September 13, 2012 - Lone Star Outdoor News - Fishing & Hunting

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September14,2012 Texas’PremierOutdoorNewspaper Volume9,Issue2

Membership privilegesJoinafishingclubforprivatewateraccess.

Page 8

Dove opener brings mixed

success

By John KeithLone Star outdoor newS

Like a holiday, the fi rst of September brings plenty of hunters to the fi elds and many dove hitting the dirt.

But Tropical Storm Isaac may have had a negative impact on what shaped up to be an above-average opener.

“I think Isaac, with all the wind that came out of the north, pushed some birds off of us,” said Forrest Armke of Ford Ranch in Menard County. “Where power lines had been solid with dove before, there would only be eight or 10 birds.”

Despite the poorly timed change in weather, Armke said some hunters still had good luck.

“It was spotty, but good, and most people got their limits,” he said. “Some places were outstanding, and some not so good.”

Armke said hunters fi lled

about 10 percent of their bag with whitewings, and the rest were mourning dove. The best hunting was before sundown.

“The main event is the last hour,” he said. “We may hunt a little bit all day, but the best hunting here is the last hour in the afternoon.”

Farther east, Robert Steenbeke of 1A Hunting echoed the report of inconsistent action.

“In Lacy Lakeview, the mornings were slow, but the afternoons were great,” he said. “It’s a pass-shoot on the whitewings that live in Waco — when they go out in the mornings they go out real high, and in the afternoon they have the extra ounce of food in them and they fl y lower.”

Steenbeke also had hunters in Frost, located in Navarro County, target-ing birds over milo stubble.

A FREE MEAL: Dolphins, like this one that snatched a red snapper after the fi sh had been released, can be a headache for coastal anglers trying to bring fi sh up from the bottom. Photo by Conor Harrison, LSON.

Don’t eat my fi sh!

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❘❚ CONTENTSClassifieds ......... Page 36 Crossword......... Page 25FreshwaterFishingReport . Page 10FortheTable........ Page 25GameWardenBlotter .... Page 12Heroes........... Page 16OutdoorDatebook ..... Page 36OutdoorBusiness ..... Page 37Products .......... Page 17SaltwaterFishingReport.. Page 18Sun,MoonandTidedata.. Page 25

Inside

Guide catches 30,000th fi sh on his boat.Page 11

Lucky #30,000❘❚ FISHING

Early teal prospects excellent.Page 4

Teal rising

Lake Naconiche open for business.Page 11

New lake for anglers

Where is your money being spent?Page 38

TPWD budget

❘❚ HUNTING

By Conor HarrisonLone Star outdoor newS

The big boat pulled up to a wreck in 250 feet of water off of Freeport.

“This is a great spot if the dolphins aren’t here,” yelled Capt. Kenneth Doxey from the tuna tower. “If they show up,

“Flipper” a major headache for

offshore anglers See FLIPPER, Page 22

Cool front, north windsscatter birds in some areas

See DOVE OPENER, Page 20

Year-round crossbows

BIRDS AND GRINS: Waylan Owens of Boerne smiles after he downs a bird opening weekend. The hunting was spotty in areas of the state thanks to a cold front and an abundance of food and water. Photo by David J. Sams, Lone Star Outdoor News.


Easy to shoot.Longer hunting season.New challenge.All of the above are reasons some

Texas hunters are switching to cross-

See CROSSBOWS, Page 26

Page 2 September 14, 2012 LoneOStar Outdoor News LSONews.com

LSONews.com LoneOStar Outdoor News September 14, 2012 Page 3


HUNTING


For years, varmint hunters have utilized red lights to spotlight predators at night without spook-ing the animals.

But new techniques are chal-lenging the normal strategies of

nighttime lighting.Chris Robinson, of Sherman, is

a member of the Carnivore Night Crew which produces television shows and DVDs on predator hunt-ing, hunts purely with white lights.

“Everybody, when they get into night hunting, has got to drink the red Kool-Aid at one time or

another,” he said. “If these guys saw how much white light we got on these animals, they’d never hunt with a red spotlight again.”

Robinson said the crew wanted a way to fi lm better at night, which

led to trying a white spotlight.“We said we’re going to call one

up and he’s either going to run out of the country, or run into the truck,” he said. “And the fi rst coy-ote we called up acted like he never

even noticed the light.”The team did notice a higher

number of animals pulling up on the edge of the fi elds, but due to the bright white lights, they found it wasn’t an issue.

“With the ones hanging up because it wasn’t being fi ltered, the shooter had enough light to see the animal through the scope and have a shot,” he said. “While those guys with red lights are limited to 100 to 150 yards shooting, we have 60 to 70 million candle power on these animals. If they hang up at 300 yards it doesn’t matter, they’re going in the truck.”

Robinson said they saw about a 50 percent increase in kills once they started using the white lights, because the hunters could see so

Looking toward teal


Waterfowlers who want to knock off some rust before the full duck season opens can turn to early teal season for practice.

For Wharton County guide Bill Sherrill, the opener can’t come soon enough.

“To be conservative, I saw 10,000 teal this morning, which is strong,” he said. “It’s mostly all bluewings, but there are some greenwings, and more pintails than you’d think.”

Sherrill follows a simple rule

to attract the ducks.“They’re waterfowl, so if you

don’t have any water, then you don’t have any waterfowl,” he said. “I have 700 acres of water, and have been running four wells at one time for more than a week.”

The dry conditions in states north of Texas have Sherrill look-ing forward to the early season.

“It ought to be a real strong season because there’s no water above us,” he said. “And with bluewings up 20 percent from last year, whoever has water is going to be covered up.”

To keep the birds around throughout teal season, Sherrill has a strategy.

“You have to try and hunt so as not to run the birds off,” he said. “The trick is to get in and out as fast as you can because

that does the least amount of damage, and then the pond can rest.”

The speed of teal, along with their willingness to decoy, are two of Sherrill’s favorite things about the birds.

“They’re so friendly, they just come right in,” he said. “If we ever need a kitchen in our blind, then I’m quitting hunting.

“If you don’t have your teal in the fi rst hour, you might as well pick up because they’re through.”

Farther north, Lance Stancik of Backwater Waterfowl in La Grange is also seeing solid numbers of teal.

“A lot of birds are sitting in second crop rice, as they usu-

Early migrators offer fast and furious shooting

Pros and cons of red vs. white

See TEAL, Page 14

See PREDATOR, Page 24

It’s a time to sit in the shade, knock down a few birds with friends before knocking back a couple of cold drinks at the camphouse after the hunt.Dove season in Texas is all about family and friends enjoying the outdoors. The fi rst two weeks of the Texas season has seen mixed results, with lots of birds but also lots of food and water. Some people reported great

action on opening weekend, while others struggled for shots. By the second week of the season, some success was still being reported, but many of the birds are already fl ying higher and moving to less pressured fi elds. A few more cold fronts to push birds south will help replenish the hunting areas as the season progresses. Photos by David J. Sams, LSON.

Dove season in Texas

GOOD GROUP: Hunters with access to shallow ponds or fl ooded fi elds are reporting higher numbers of teal than waterfowlers in other areas. Photo by Backwater Waterfowl.

BRIGHT LIGHT: Using white light up to 70 million candle power, the Carnivore Night Crew has had no trouble staying away from red lights. Photo by Carnivore.

Shining a light on predator hunting


Counties stepping up feral hog eradication efforts

Counties across Texas are buying into the Texas Department of Agriculture Hog Out County Grant Program designed to make a concerted effort to reduce feral hogs in their areas.

Last week, Hays and Caldwell counties became the latest to apply for the program, with Hays County commis-sioners approving $1,500 for a bounty program. The county, in conjunction with Plum Creek Watershed Partnership, will pay $2 per tail for any hogs killed in the county.

“We developed a plan for the protection of the Plum Creek watershed and hog control is a part of that plan,” said Nick Dornak, Plum Creek Watershed coordina-tor. “Hog Out is a good pro-gram to help counties with eradication efforts. When we introduced the program,

we thought we needed an incentive. That is where the bounty came in.”

Dornak presented his idea to the commissioners, and they agreed to put up the bounty.

“It will run October through December, and the more hogs we get, the higher we can go in the grant com-petition,” Dornak said.

More than 20 counties par-ticipated in the Hog Out pro-gram last year, and Hardeman County won the grant incen-tive program with 2,047 total hogs killed. The top fi ve counties shared a $60,000 grant last year, and the top three in this year’s program will split $45,000 in grants to go toward hog eradication and educational efforts.

“We take harvest informa-tion and put that into a data-base so we can better under-

stand the problem,” Dornak added.

Hays County Extension Agent Richard Parrish said the Hays County program is a partnership between the county and Plum Creek Watershed Partnership.

“Aside from the bounty program, we are planning educational efforts to teach people about feral hogs, dis-eases they transmit, and the laws and regulations regard-ing them,” Parrish said. “Ultimately, we hope to see 750 hogs harvested out of Hays County.”

The 2013 Hog Out County Grant Program is currently accepting notice of intent par-ticipation forms from coun-ties that wish to participate.

For more information, call (512) 936-2450.

— Staff report

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EMILEE BROWN of Granbury took this 8-point buck last season in Lampasas County

near Lometa while hunting with her grandfather. Emilee took the buck with one shot

from her pink Thompson Center Pro Hunter .22-250 at 145 yards. It was the third

deer she has taken.

New shooting facility nears openingNorth Texas hunters and gun enthusiasts will have a new excuse to go shooting

soon — in a spacious and comfortable atmosphere to boot.The Frisco Gun Club and Academy is set to open in 2013, boasting 43,000

square feet of building space.Ray Symons, CHL instructor at the DFW Gun Range and Training Center, said the

new location is going to be something special.“We’re going to have 40 shooting lanes, with 36 of them being handgun lanes,

and four long-gun rifl e lanes,” he said. “We will even have a café where you can get something to eat.”

The club will also have 7,000 feet dedicated to retail supplies for members, with gunsmiths on site, in addition to a 100-person training room and a member’s lounge.

“There’s a lot of space to relax in; it’s not built tight,” he said. “There are plenty of places to sit, relax and talk to each other, and just enjoy fellowship and compan-ionship in a friendly environment.”

Membership benefi ts include a T-shirt, one free handgun rental per year, and reduced rates for ammo and gun rental. Base individual membership starts at $225.

The club is being constructed on the corner of El Dorado Parkway and Research Road.

— Staff report

New rules being considered for CWD areasChronic Wasting Disease is making a lot of people in Texas nervous. State wildlife offi cials say more deliberation is needed before new rules are

adopted governing Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s regulatory response to the detection of CWD in Texas.

Consideration of proposed rules restricting deer movement in the CWD-affected area of far West Texas will be delayed until the TPWD Commission’s November meeting.

“Because this is a very dynamic process involving a complex disease, our approach to proposed rules regarding unnatural deer movement is one of caution,” said Mitch Lockwood, TPWD big game program director. “The consensus among our CWD task force is that additional measures need consideration beyond what we originally proposed.”

Proposed rules being considered would limit permitted deer movement into or from areas in which CWD has been discovered as well as areas for which there is a moderate to high probability that the disease exists undetected.

In addition to permitted movement restrictions, offi cials will be collecting samples from hunter harvested mule deer for CWD testing. All mule deer harvested in the CWD Containment Zone of El Paso, Hudspeth, and Culberson counties during the upcoming mule deer season, Nov. 23-Dec. 9, must be inspected by offi cials at man-datory hunter check stations and tested for CWD.

Mandatory check stations will be set up at the Van Horn Convention Center and at Mae’s Café in Cornudas.

Also, hunters in the surrounding High Risk Zone are encouraged to submit their harvested deer for CWD testing at voluntary check stations in Bakersfi eld, Midland, Alpine and Sanderson, scheduled to be open during all three weekends of the gen-eral mule deer season.

TPWD plans to post all test results on the agency’s website as soon as results are received from Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory.

— TPWD

GET THE HOGS OUT: Many Texas counties are offering hunters and trappers incentives to reduce feral hog num-bers. Photo by Conor Harrison, LSON.


Myths/impact of snakebitesBy John R. MeyerFor Lone Star outdoor newS

By noon, a perfect open-ing morning dove hunt was drawing to a close. Besides a decent amount of shoot-ing action, word had spread of the added excitement of a rattlesnake encounter.

Bill (not his real name) stopped to check out the decapitated snake on his way back to the shade where lunch was set up.

“I reached down to pick up the head, and right as my hand made a shadow that crossed the eyes, it just spon-taneously closed its mouth on my finger,” he said.

A reflexive bite, as it is sometimes called, injected a significant amount of venom into his right index finger.

The day’s hunt was over, but the real adventure was just getting started.

Within hours, a large dark blister had formed. A cou-ple of days later, the skin on the back of his index finger started to fall off.

If a bite results from a ven-omous snake encounter, things can get complicated in a hurry. Tradition and lore

have preserved several do-it-yourself remedies for snakebites. At best, most are simply ineffec-tive, according to health care professionals that treat snake bites. At worst, a few are potentially more harmful than the bite itself.

The days of using a razor blade to make a cut near the fang puncture and suck-ing the poison out orally are mostly gone. As long as “True Grit” reruns are around though, this method remains in the public’s psyche. A dirty knife, as well as errant cutting pose much more of a threat than the potential benefit. Scientific journals universally agree that there is no evidence of actually getting any venom out this way — it is long gone into the blood stream.

Tourniquets theoretically slow the spread of venom. However, it is practically impossible to apply the pre-cise amount of force nec-essary to accomplish this without causing harm by denying the rest of the limb circulation. In other words,

it’s either too tight or too loose.

Electrical shock is another method that has made the rounds over the years — pic-ture everything from a cattle prod to an extension cord with the insulation skinned off the end. Hopefully, the mental image of a buddy coming to your aid with either of these is self-explana-tory. Local tissue damage can result from electrical burns, increasing healing time.

The purported neutral-ization of the venom by the electricity has never been shown to occur. In contrast, the negative effect of electri-cal shock on normal heart function has been well docu-mented.

The do-it-yourself tech-nique hanging on with the most tenacity is probably the negative pressure suc-tion device — something like a syringe with the end cut off

BAD BITE: Getting bitten by a snake can be pain-ful, but steps taken after the bite can determine how serious the damage becomes. Photo by John Meyer, for LSON.

See SNAKEBITES, Page 23


Waterfowling book looks at Texas’ hunting historyBy Conor HarrisonLone Star outdoor newS

If you are a fan of waterfowl hunting in Texas, this book needs to be on your coffee table at home or in the office.

“A Hundred Years of Texas Waterfowl Hunting, The Decoys, Guides, Clubs, and Places, 1870s to 1970s,” by R.K. Sawyer, com-bines great photography of the past with a well-written history of Texas waterfowl hunting.

Interviews with numerous “old- timers” who celebrated the finest duck-hunting days Texas has ever seen lend credibility to the book. From the days of trained steers getting hunters into the marsh to sink box blinds to live decoys

to marsh buggies, this 400-page book covers the gamut of what waterfowling used to look like.

Like the inside cover of the book says, “gleaned from interviews with sportsmen and guides of decades past as well as meticulous research in news archives, Sawyer’s vivid documentation of Texas’ deep-rooted waterfowl hunt-ing tradition is accompanied by a superb collection of his-torical and modern photo-graphs.”

And those photographs are what really set this book apart.

Game wardens will have a laugh thinking about the

tickets some of these hunt-ers would incur today as they proudly displayed their har-vests after the hunt. Several hundred ducks were not uncommon for a day’s hunt during many eras covered in the book.

Here at Lone Star Outdoor News, our favorite part of the book was looking at old photographs of the places we love to hunt each season — the Trinity River, the Port Bay Club along the midcoast and the Katy Prairie, to name a few.

What an adventure it must have been a hundred years ago to load up for the day and come in late that night

with several hundred ducks!We also enjoyed how the book

covered the complete Texas water-fowl scene — from duck hunt-ing the coast and East Texas Pineywoods to goose hunting the Texas prairies. Sawyer gives great first-hand accounts from the peo-ple who were there.

We recommend this book as an addition to the library of any seri-ous waterfowler or history buff who wants to see what the past really looked like.

The book is a little pricey at $100 for a hardcover and $35 for cloth, but worth the cost with all of the photos and work that went into comprising the book. Publication date is set for Sept. 15.

Suppressors now legal for hunting

Silence in the woods is golden.On Sept. 1, a new regulation

allowing hunters in the state of Texas to use suppressors while pursuing game animals went into effect. With the passage of the new rule by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission on March 30, Texas became the second state in 2012 to legalize suppressor use while hunting. In 2012, similar measures were also passed legislatively in Arizona and Oklahoma.

“These devices are already legal for hunting exotic animals, includ-ing feral hogs, and there is no resource- or enforcement-related reason to prohibit these devices for hunting alligators, game animals or game birds,” said Scott Vaca, TPWD assistant chief of wildlife enforcement, in a statement.

Contrary to popular belief, sup-pressors, also referred to as silencers, do not render gunshots inaudible. However, often times they do reduce the report of a firearm to safe levels, helping to protect the shooter and those nearby from per-manent hearing damage.

In order for a civilian to purchase a suppressor, they must live in one of the 39 states that allow civilian ownership.

All applicants must submit an ATF Form 4, in duplicate, to the National Firearms Act Branch of the ATF for each suppressor purchased. A Form 4, or Application for Tax Paid Transfer and Registration of Firearm, includes a stringent background check that is conducted by the FBI. In addition, applicants must submit a $200 pay-ment for the transfer tax, duplicate copies of passport photos and finger-prints, and receive a signoff from a chief law enforcement officer (CLEO) in their jurisdiction. From start to finish, this transfer process takes anywhere from 30 days to one year to complete.

— Staff report

New hunting section on weather.com

Checking the weather while plan-ning a hunting trip just got a little easier. A new hunting section has been created at weather.com, along with an update of its fishing section.

The section, at weather.com/sports-rec/hunting-fishing/main, offers relevant news and informa-tion, as well as the most reliable weather forecasts for all your favorite locations to hunt or fish. What time is sunrise? Will it rain? When is high tide? When will wildlife be active?

The new section includes a fore-cast with detailed weather data, including temperature, precipita-tion, wind, humidity, hourly and day-part forecasts, as well as sun-rise, sunset and moon phases. Gear guides, hunting videos and photos are also located on the site.

— The Weather Channel


FISHINGQuest for largemouth

By John Keith Lone Star outdoor newS

The early bird gets the worm is an old cliché, but one that rang true for a father on a mission for his daughter to catch her first largemouth bass.

“I got her up at about 4 in the morning,” said Mike Whitacre of Lakeside. “She’s caught sand bass and things, but I was really wanting to get her to catch a big bass.”

Mike’s daughter was less than thrilled about the early

Father/daughter duo go extra mile to catch bass

AIRBORNE BASS: Katelynn Whitacre’s first largemouth didn’t come without a hard fight, but the hook stayed set, and the bass was

boated. Photo by Mike Whitacre.

See LARGEMOUTH, Page 15

Reel easyBy Conor HarrisonLone Star outdoor newS

San Antonio angler Jason Downs loves the feel of a big fish caught while trolling offshore.

The fight is the attraction for

Downs when a big wahoo or billfish hammers a trolling bait.

But sometimes anglers like Downs want to fill a cooler with “meat fish.” That was the situa-tion when Downs and a couple friends headed out for several

days offshore.The trip started slow, but early

on the second day the cooler began to fill up with deep-water species such as golden tilefish

Electric reels get baits down, fish up quickly

Privileges of private water

By John Keith Lone Star outdoor newS

Some anglers dream of a day on the water where every honey hole is clear of other boaters, Jet Skis are nowhere to be seen, and the fish stay unpressured and willing to bite.

This dream is often a reality for anglers who choose to join fishing clubs or pay for access to private ponds.

Mark Perry, of Spring, is a mem-ber of Private Water Fishing, a company that offers access to more than 50 private lakes, which members can reserve for them-selves. Memberships begin at roughly $500 a year, with most lakes carrying an additional day rate of up to $75.

“I love the program, where else can you go fishing on a privately stocked lake for 35 to 75 dollars?”

Perry said. “By far it’s the cheapest way for me to go fishing; me and my wife and kids look forward to it — once you reserve the lake, it’s yours, and nobody else is going to be out there.”

Many of the lakes also have lodg-ing available, with some locations renting for as low as $25 a person.

“One thing I like is you can include the family on it,” he said. “We’ve stayed at quite a few lodges, and I rank them up there (with) 4 or 5 stars.”

But if members are expected to pay, then how is the fishing?

“Everytime I go I always catch fish,” Perry said. “Sometimes you lose count after 20; it’s just a lot of fun.”

Steve Alexander runs Private Water Fishing.

“The biggest benefit is when you

Paying for pond access brings ample opportunity

See PRIVATE, Page 28

See REEL, Page 19

PAYING THE PRICE: Once an angler considers fuel, ramp fees, and other intangibles of a day on a public lake, fishing private waters can be a cost-effective option. Photo by Private Water Fishing.

A FIGHT WITHOUT THE STRAIN: Using electric reels can help bring fish up quickly from great depths with zero strain on the angler. On the flip side, some consider this type of fishing unexciting. Photo by Conor Harrison, LSON.


Trout fishing slows on the lower coast


As the summer months have dragged on, the trout fishing along Texas’ lower coast has gone south.

“It’s extraordinarily slow,” South Padre Island fishing guide Capt. Mark Atkinson said. “Some of the guides in Port Mansfield have been doing pretty good, but lately down south here it’s been limited at best.”

Atkinson said the dry, hot summer has taken its toll on the quality of fish in the bays.

“You can catch fish on the edge of the Intracoastal Channel and catch schoolies

all day long, but anything with any size to it you’re going to have to wade up north,” he said. “It’s been a brutal summer, with not a whole lot of rain and just blistering hot.”

Atkinson said there isn’t a single factor he can point out preventing better trout action.

“You can get some trout, but nothing with any girth to it,” he said. “A lot of guys are using pinfish and fishing on the edge of the intercoastal, and catching a limit of small ones.”

Also in the Lower Laguna Madre, Capt. Adrian Flandes is seeing slightly better action.

“There’s still some activity and there’s some decent-sized trout,” he said. “They haven’t stopped completely, but early in the morning is usually the best. It has slowed down a little bit, and now more redfish are showing up.”

DISCOVERING DINKS: Anglers along the lower coast are reporting less than ideal trout action, with mostly smaller fish. Photo by John Keith, LSON.

Big fish inactive, smaller fish only fair

See TROUT, Page 19


ALAN HENRY: Water lightly stained; 82–88 degrees; 8.72’ low. Largemouth bass are good on buzzbaits early, midmorning switching to shaky heads, Texas rigs and jigs.

AMISTAD: Water clear; 84–88 degrees; 28.44’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on watermelon top-waters, spinner baits and soft plastics. Catfi sh are good on cheesebait, stinkbait, and nightcrawlers over baited holes.

ARROWHEAD: Water off-color; 83–88 degrees; 11.01’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on pop-pers early, later switching to Texas rigs, jigs and jerkbaits. White bass are good on slabs and Rooster Tails. Catfi sh are fair to good on prepared bait.

ATHENS: Water clear, 84–88 de-grees; 3.44’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on Texas-rigged plastics in black neon around edges of grass and shallow to medium crankbaits in shad patterns. Crappie are good on minnows. Catfi sh are good on prepared bait.

BASTROP: Water stained; 87–91 degrees. Largemouth bass are good on top-waters, and on watermelon crankbaits and soft plastics.

BOB SANDLIN: Water lightly stained; 84–89 degrees; 4.54’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on medium crankbaits in 6–8 feet. Some top-water action reported. White bass are good on slabs. Catfi sh are fair to good on trotlines or juglines with soap.

BRAUNIG: Water clear. Largemouth bass are fair on watermelon top-waters and soft plastics. Channel catfi sh are good on shrimp and stinkbait. Blue catfi sh are good on cut bait.

BRIDGEPORT: Water clear; 83–88 degrees; 10.17’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on Texas-rigged watermelon/chartreuse worms and shallow-running crankbaits fi shed around main lake points and larger rocks along shorelines. Crappie are good on minnows.

BROWNWOOD: Water lightly stained; 83–87 degrees; 13.13’ low. Largemouth bass to 4.5 pounds are excellent on redbug and watermelon red shaky heads with soft plastics, and on top-wa-ters late. White bass are good on

soft plastics and lipless crankbaits under lights at night. Channel catfi sh to 3 pounds are good on cut bait over baited holes.

BUCHANAN: Water murky; 84–88 degrees; 26.31’ low. Largemouth bass are good on watermelon fl ukes, chartreuse poppers and black/blue plastics on jigheads off points early. Channel catfi sh are good on shrimp, minnows, and cheesebait. Yellow and blue catfi sh are good on perch upriver.

CADDO: Water stained; 84–88 degrees; 1.01’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on top-waters early, switching to Texas-rigged soft plastics in green pumpkin later in the day. White and yellow bass are good on slabs and jigs. Catfi sh are good on prepared bait.

CALAVERAS: Water clear. Largemouth bass are fair on char-treuse crankbaits and soft plas-tics. Redfi sh are good on crawfi sh and tilapia along the shoreline. Channel and blue catfi sh are good on shrimp, stinkbait and shad near the discharge.

CEDAR CREEK: Water lightly stained; 83–88 degrees; 2.59’ low. Largemouth bass are good on black and blue fl ipping jigs around docks — main lake has been best. Crappie are good on minnows.

COLEMAN: Water lightly stained; 85–89 degrees; 17.76’ low. Largemouth bass are good on water-melon top-waters, soft plastics and lipless crankbaits. Crappie are good on minnows and white tube jigs.

COLETO CREEK: Water fairly clear; 2.62’ low. Largemouth bass are good on watermelon soft plastics and crankbaits.

CONROE: Water fairly clear; 85–89 degrees; 2.80’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on watermelon Caroli-na-rigged soft plastics and lipless crankbaits. Crappie are good on minnows and blue tube jigs.

COOPER: Water lightly stained; 84–89 degrees; 3.71’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on jigs and Texas-rigged soft plastics (slow presentation is best). Crappie are good on minnows. White bass are good on slabs. Hybrid striper are good on small swimbaits and live shad over main lake humps. Catfi sh are good on prepared bait and cut bait.

FALCON: Water clear; 88–92 degrees; 39.30’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on chartreuse/black crankbaits, spinner baits and soft plastics. Chan-nel and blue catfi sh are excellent on frozen shrimp and stinkbait.

FAYETTE: Water stained. Largemouth bass are fair on spin-ner baits and lipless crankbaits. Channel and blue catfi sh are good on cut shad, nightcrawlers and shrimp over baited holes.

FORK: Water clear; 84–88 degrees; 3.39’ low. Largemouth bass are slow on Carolina rigs and football jigs in deeper water. The shallow bite and fi shing bridge columns with drop-shot-rigged soft plastics is producing good numbers. Crappie are good on minnows and jigs over brush piles and around bridge columns. Catfi sh are good on prepared bait.

GRANGER: Water clear; 86–90 de-grees; 1.08’ low. Largemouth bass are good on watermelon soft plastic worms with chartreuse tails and watermelon top-waters. Blue catfi sh are good on shad and shrimp.

GRAPEVINE: Water clear; 83–87 degrees; 3.50’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on green pumpkin fi nesse worms on shaky heads around main lake points in 6–10 feet — fi sh being caught from deeper brush piles as well. White bass are good on slabs.

HOUSTON COUNTY: Water clear; 86–90 degrees; 1.28’ low. Largemouth bass to 5 pounds are good on blue wacky worms near Paradise Island in 5 feet. Crappie are good on minnows around brush in 10–14 feet. Bream are good on live worms off grass beds. Catfi sh are good on trotlines baited with live perch in 20 feet.

HUBBARD CREEK: 82–88 degrees; 18.49’ low. Largemouth bass are fair to good on top-waters early, midmorning switching to Texas rigs, shaky heads, jigs and drop-shot rigs. Crappie are fair to good on jigs and live minnows over brush piles. Catfi sh are fair to good on nightcrawlers and prepared bait.

JOE POOL: Water clear; 83–88 de-grees; 1.82’ low. Largemouth bass are good on green pumpkin Texas-rigged soft plastics and medium-running crankbaits in 8–10 feet along points. Crappie are good on minnows and jigs. Catfi sh are good on prepared baits.

LAVON: Water lightly stained; 83–87 degrees; 5.76’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on Texas-rigged worms around shallow cover. Crappie are good on minnows and jigs around bridge columns.

LBJ: Water clear; 87–91 degrees; 0.36’ low. Largemouth bass are good on watermelon/blue fl ake plastics, chartreuse spinner baits and Texas-rigged soft plastics in 8–15 feet early. Striped bass are good on silver striper jigs and arti-fi cial shad at night. White bass are good on plastics at night. Channel catfi sh are good on nightcrawlers and liver. Yellow and blue catfi sh are good on trotlines baited with goldfi sh and perch.

LEWISVILLE: Water clear; 83–87 degrees; 4.05’ low. Largemouth bass are good on shallow crankbaits and shaky heads. White bass are good on slabs. Catfi sh are good on prepared bait.

LIVINGSTON: Water fairly clear; 86–90 degrees; 0.71’ low. Largemouth bass are good on watermelon soft plastics, spin-ner baits and lipless crankbaits. Striped bass are very good on silver striper jigs and lipless crankbaits. Blue catfi sh are good on shad and minnows.

MARTIN CREEK: Water clear; 83–87 degrees; 5.14’ low. Largemouth bass are good on football jigs in deeper water with shallow bite improving. Crappie are good on jigs. Catfi sh are good on prepared bait and minnows.

MONTICELLO: Water fairly clear; 86–89 degrees; 0.37’ high. Largemouth bass are good on Texas-rigged soft plastics around stumps and on frogs in bluegill and larger jigs fi shed in deeper water.

NAVARRO MILLS: Water stained; 88–92 degrees; 1.49’ low. Largemouth bass are good on watermelon spinner baits and shallow-running crankbaits near the dam. Crappie are good on min-nows and blue tube jigs over brush piles. Channel catfi sh are good on stinkbait, shrimp, and shad.

O.H. IVIE: Water stained; 81–88 degrees; 46.08’ low. Largemouth bass are good on top-waters, later switching to Texas rigs, jigs, spoons and Carolina rigs. Crappie are fair to good on minnows and jigs. White bass are good on top-waters

and slabs. Catfi sh are fair to good on nightcrawlers and prepared bait.

OAK CREEK: Water stained; 83–87 degrees; 18.17’ low. Largemouth bass are fair to good on buzzbaits early and late, midmorning switching to Texas rigs, Carolina rigs and shaky heads. Crap-pie are good on jigs and live min-nows over brush piles. Catfi sh are good on chartreuse nightcrawlers.

PALESTINE: Water clear; 83–88 degrees; 1.28’ low. Largemouth bass are good on fi nesse jigs and Texas-rigged soft plastics near shallow cover and around docks. Crappie are good on minnows and jigs. Hybrid striper are good on slabs and live shad. White bass are good on slabs and minnows. Catfi sh are good on prepared bait.

POSSUM KINGDOM: Water fairly clear; 83–87 degrees; 7.64’ low. Largemouth bass are fair to good on top-waters early, later switching to Texas rigs, jigs and Carolina rigs. Crappie are good on minnows and jigs over brush piles and around bridge columns. White bass are good on top-waters while schooling and on slabs over humps. Catfi sh are good on pre-pared bait and nightcrawlers.

PROCTOR: Water stained; 86–90 degrees; 3.69’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on chartreuse crankbaits and soft plastics. Channel and blue catfi sh are good on minnows and nightcrawlers.

RAY HUBBARD: Water clear; 83–87 degrees; 2.00’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on soft plastics and football jigs around deeper brush piles. Medium-diving crankbaits along rip-rap points are also productive. Crappie are good on minnows and Road Runners. White bass are good on humps with hybrids mixed in.

RAY ROBERTS: Water clear; 83–87 degrees; 2.11’ low. Largemouth bass are good on Texas rigs and medium-running crankbaits along main lake points. Catfi sh are good on nightcrawlers.

RICHLAND CHAMBERS: Water clear; 84–88 degrees; 2.69’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on green pumpkin fi nesse worms fi shed on shaky heads and plastics around docks — a slow presentation is best. White bass are good on slabs

and live shad. Crappie are good on minnows and jigs. Catfi sh are good on prepared bait.

SOMERVILLE: Water murky; 87–91 degrees; 1.40’ low. Largemouth bass are slow. Crappie are good on minnows and chartreuse tube jigs.

STILLHOUSE: Water murky; 85–89 degrees; 2.86’ low. Largemouth bass are good on chartreuse spinner baits and crankbaits. White bass are good on pet spoons and slabs.

TAWAKONI: Water stained; 83–88 degrees; 2.74’ low. Largemouth bass are slow on Texas-rigged black/blue soft plastics and black/blue fl ipping jigs around docks. The early bite has been the most consistent. Larger profi le jigs have also been productive.

TEXOMA: Water clear; 83–87 de-grees; 2.45’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on medium crankbaits along main lake points — smaller jigs and Carolina rigs in 8–10 feet are producing as well. Striped bass are good on slabs and live shad. Catfi sh are good on nightcrawlers and cut bait.

TOLEDO BEND: Water stained; 82–86 degrees; 3.37’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on water-melon craw worms and crankbaits. Crappie are good on minnows and white tube jigs. Channel and blue catfi sh are good on trotlines baited with shrimp and live bait.

TRAVIS: Water stained; 87–91 degrees; 45.76’ low. Largemouth bass are fair on watermelon/blue fl ake worms in 12–25 feet. White bass are good on silver slabs and jigging spoons. Channel and blue catfi sh are good on perch.

WHITNEY: Water stained; 83–87 degrees; 4.95’ low. Largemouth bass are slow. Crappie are good on minnows. Catfi sh are good on minnows and nightcrawlers.

— TPWD

TEXAS FRESHWATER FISHING REPORTCase of the blues

LAKE TAWAKONI — The channel cat bite is consistent, but anglers will have to be commit-ted if they want to catch blue cats, according to area guide Larry Thomas.

“Blues are decent in the early morning — 3 a.m. to dawn,” Thomas said. “You’re not going to catch a lot but they’re going to be decent sized.”

The channel catfi sh are biting on stinkbait, with the blue cats pre-ferring fresh shad. Thomas said the bite will improve as the weather gets colder.

“The cooler the water, the better the blues bite,” he said. “Go to the shallow fl ats and shallow coves about 3 a.m. The shallow parts cool off a little quicker in the night.”

To contact Larry Thomas, call (940) 229-0288.

Locating deep largemouthALAN HENRY RESERVOIR — The largemouth bass have been suspended,

but hungry, according to Alan Henry guide Phillip Pool.“I am on one hell of a good bite — the fi shing just doesn’t get

much better,” Pool said. “We boated 42 fi sh today in six hours, which brought our grand total number of fi sh in three days of fi sh-ing to over 200 fi sh.”

Included in the 200 fi sh was a 10.75-pound largemouth. The fi sh are hitting shad-colored baits at depths of 25 to 40 feet. But even though Pool has been having luck, conditions could use some improvement.

“A rain would be nice to change things up,” he said.To contact Phillip Pool, call (806) 368-7872.

Bring on the bullsCALAVERAS LAKE — The redfi sh will be changing their patterns

as cooler weather arrives, which means bull reds from 15 to 25 pounds will become more active, according to area guide Manny Martinez.

“Sometime in the second or third week of September, all the way through half of November is when these fi sh start heading toward the dam area,” he said. “As the temps go down, that makes the fi shing very good — very electrifying.”

Redfi sh are best on silver or gold spoons. Martinez said the catfi sh action is also on the rise, with one of the best areas being around the 181 Cove. Spider Island has also been producing some decent fi shing.

Catfi sh are biting on live tilapia, in addition to punch bait.Martinez said the water temperatures should fl uctuate between 85 and 92 degrees in the

coming weeks.To contact Manny Martinez, go to fi shingwithmanny.com.

— John Keith

SEE MOREn Saltwater fi shing reports: Page 18

pounds will become more active, according to area guide Manny Martinez.“Sometime in the second or third week of September, all the way

pounds will become more active, according to area guide Manny Martinez.


Milestone catch


Since 2005, fishing guide Weldon Kirk of Fish Tales Guide Service has brought smiles to an untold number of anglers who have had a great day fishing for catfish on his home lakes of Somerville, Fayette County and Gibbons Creek Reservoir.

Although the angler numbers might be unknown (actually, Kirk probably knows the exact number of anglers, as well), the number of fish caught on Kirk’s boat is no mystery. And Kirk recently passed a milestone, when

Brazoria angler Ralph Harvey boated fish num-ber 30,000.

“After the previous days trip, we needed to catch 12 fish today to get 30,000 fish caught on my boat in the last four years and eight months,” Kirk said. “I started keeping records in January of 2008. Ralph and Charmine did not know I was looking for fish number 12, so when Ralph brought number 12 into the boat — a blue cat — he commented on it being a nice fish.

“I reached out, shook his hand and told him, ‘Not

Fishing guide keeps detailed records, customer

lands 30,000th catfish

New lake gives up big bassBy Craig Nyhus Lone Star outdoor newS

It’s not often Texas fishermen get the chance to try out a new lake. A lucky few, though, beginning Sept. 1, were among the first to wet a line in Lake Naconiche in East Texas at the lake’s long-awaited offi-cial opening.

And at least one angler landed a 10- pounder.

Bobby Clark of Humble didn’t apply for the lottery, put in place to limit the amount of boats on the water and trailers in the parking lot for the first 14 days, but still landed a 24 1/4-inch largemouth, esti-mated to weigh 10 pounds or more.

“I heard about the lake from a buddy,” Clark said. “So I got online and did some research, and later found out it was open-ing Sept. 1 and they were doing a lottery.”

Clark didn’t enter the lottery, but still got to fish.

“I called the park to find out details, and they told me for watercraft without a trailer, I didn’t need to apply for the lot-tery,” he said. “We fish from kayaks, so three of us showed up and went fishing.”

Once they figured out what the fish wanted, the fishing was excellent.

“They wanted spinner baits and Senkos,” Clark said. “It took us until late morning to figure that out though, so it got real hot out there. We caught around 40 fish with a few 5-, 4- and 3-pounders.”

But it was the big fish that created the memory.

“I thought I hit a stump — my line just stopped, then took off,” he said. “She drug me up into the trees, and I was tell-ing a buddy to get the net out. The fish came by the kayak but was deep and she didn’t want to hit the line. Then she came by the side of my kayak and I lipped it. I was shaking.”

Clark is an avid bass fisherman and has fished kayak tournaments and is a pro

Lake Naconiche finally open for public fishing

See MILESTONE, Page 23 See NEW LAKE, Page 31

HAPPY GUIDE: Weldon Kirk stands behind angler Ralph Harvey after Ralph pulled in the 30,000th fish caught on Kirk’s boat since he began keeping detailed records. Photo by Weldon Kirk.

FRESH WATERS: After decades of waiting, East Texas anglers are fishing the new Lake Naconiche, with early catches exceeding expectations. Photo by Andrew Brosig, The Daily Sentinel.


WARDENS HELP WITH WILDFIRESIn mid-August, thunderstorms

sparked several fires around Possum Kingdom Lake. Palo Pinto County Game Wardens Matt Waggoner and Cliff Swofford, along with Young County Game Warden Brent Isom, assisted the Palo Pinto Fire Department with locating the fires and transporting firemen and their equipment by boat to fight the fires. All fires were suppressed before they were able to get out of control.

EARLY START TO SEASONParker County Game Warden

Ronald Mathis cited two teenagers for hunting deer during a closed sea-son and for exceeding the bag limit after the two shot an eight-point buck off of a county road. Cases pending.

KILLING HOG FROM COMPANY VEHICLE COSTS JOB

Jack County Game Warden Gary Hobbs received a call from a local oilfield company stating that one of its employees had killed a hog on a ranch the night before. The company has a policy forbidding the carrying of firearms in its vehicles. They had already contacted the landowner. Hobbs contacted the employee and they returned to the location of the kill. The employee was charged with a Class C misdemeanor criminal attempt to trespass. The company terminated the employee.

ATTEMPTED ALLIGATOR RELEASE LIKELY FUTILE

Washington County Game Warden Eddie Hines received a tip on a subject who had shot and killed an alligator out of season. The subject made an attempt to have it mounted by a taxidermist in Fannin County. Hines notified Fannin County Game Warden Randolph McGee, who located the individual and con-

tacted Collin County Game Warden Josh Ross. Ross visited the subject’s home and learned that he was no longer in possession of the alligator. The man said that after learning that the kill was illegal, he went back to retrieve the alligator from his refrig-erator and it was still moving. He then took the alligator down to the creek and released it, that is, after he had shot it in the head with a .22 caliber rifle. A search was con-ducted of the area and the alligator could not be located. Case pending.

BAITING WOESHood and Johnson counties Game

Wardens Deshanna Creager and Scott Kirkpatrick found several dove hunt-ers on a hunting lease within Johnson County. It wasn’t long after the first contact that the game wardens found evidence of baiting. By the time they finished checking all of the hunters on the lease, citations were issued for hunting over bait, unplugged shot-guns and no hunting licenses.

SPOTLIGHTERS BUSTED WITH SHOREBIRD

Coryell County Game Warden Andrew Alexander received a complaint regarding some indi-viduals spotlighting. Working with the Gatesville Police Department, Alexander was able to make contact with three individuals hunting from

a truck. During the course of the contact, Alexander found a plover (a wading shorebird), the only resource taken by the individuals prior to Alexander’s arrival. Cases pending.

TOO MANY REDS, TOO FEW PFDSAlong the Colorado River, Matagorda

County Game Wardens Aaron Koenig and David Janssen checked three occupants in one vessel. The group was in possession of seven undersized speckled trout and seven undersized redfish. Citations were issued for exceeding the daily bag limit by one redfish, as well as operating the vessel without sufficient personal flotation devices. Cases pending.

CATFISH FILLETS FOUND IN SHOEBOXA report of subjects cast netting

blue catfish at Lake Corpus Christi was received by Game Warden Kevin Mitchell. The caller indicated that the violator was filleting the fish, placing the fillets into a box, and then the subject's wife would hide the box in their vehicle. Upon arrival, Mitchell noticed the cast net and man and woman as described by the caller. The man denied hav-ing any fish other than the four legal blue cats in a bucket. Mitchell asked for and received consent to search the subject’s vehicle, where 88 fillets were found in a shoebox. Numerous cases pending.

BEAR CAUGHT TRYING TO GET CAT FOOD

Val Verde County Game Warden Isaac Ruiz responded to a call from a landowner about a bear that was trying to get into her storage build-ing. Apparently the bear was hungry, as it was trying to get to a bag of cat food. When the bear ignored the homeowner’s yells, she ran back into her house and retrieved a shot-gun. A shot into the air did the trick and the bear left. Ruiz provided the homeowner with information to try and prevent another encounter.

WAS THE CAR A COUGAR, TOO?Val Verde County Game Warden

Mike Durand responded to a call from the police department concern-ing a mountain lion sitting on a hood of a car in downtown Del Rio. The lion had been cornered in a build-ing and the officer wanted to know if it was OK to shoot it. Due to its location and behavior, the lion was dispatched by the Del Rio Police Department.

WHEN WILL THEY LEARN IT’S A TRICK QUESTION?

Kent County Game Wardens Drew Spencer and Trey Kram were patrol-ling for dove hunting compliance when they heard some distant shots. The wardens approached the area and, after the last shot was fired

at sunset, they checked the four men. One man, who had just shot a limit of 15 dove, was checked by Spencer. Spencer asked the man how his morning hunt had gone. The man replied that although the birds hadn’t flown as well, he had shot a few dove. After retrieving those dove from the man’s cooler, a bag limit violation citation was issued and three doves seized.

STIRRING UP BIRDS, CITATION WITH ATVPalo Pinto County Game Wardens

David Pellizzari and Matt Waggoner checked a group of dove hunters on a corporate day lease. The wardens found multiple unplugged shot-guns and hunter education violations throughout the field. As they were leaving, they noticed a subject on an ATV driving erratically through the field. The wardens noticed the subject didn’t have a gun, and when Pellizzari asked him what he was doing, the subject said, “Trying to stir some birds up.” The subject was educated on migratory bird laws and was issued a citation for rallying migratory game birds. Cases pending.

CUSTOMER APPRECIATION HUNT ACTUALLY A DAY LEASE

Bell County Game Warden Brandt Bernstein checked more than 100 hunters opening morning. He came across one large group of hunters on a day lease and wrote 23 citations. Bernstein asked the owner of the prop-erty if this was a day lease. The owner said that to show his appreciation to people with whom he does business, he let them hunt there and then at the end of the day he gave away a shot-gun. Due to the owner’s demeanor and known previous violations, Bernstein asked several of the hunters in the field what they paid to hunt. They replied they were paying $65 per day. Bernstein cited the owner of the prop-erty for not having his lease license.

GAME WARDEN BLOTTER

Hearing distant gunfire, Garza/Lynn counties Game Warden Drew Spencer and Scurry County Game Warden Trey Kram traveled to a ranch in Garza County. The wardens tracked down the shots and approached two men dove hunting around a water tank. In the possession of the two men were one unplugged shot-gun and 31 dove. When asked if they had hunted the day prior, the men replied that they had. When asked

if it was possible that they had shot too many dove then as well, they each lowered their heads and said it was quite possible. The wardens were led back to the ranch house and handed a large bag of breasted dove. After counting out the legal limit of 15 doves for each man, Kram still held 22 breasted dove. Multiple bag limit and possession limit violations were cited, and 23 dove were seized.

WATERHOLE DOVE HUNTING TOO GOOD TO RESIST



ally do this time of year,” Stancik said. “But a lot of people are at the mercy of the water gods right now.”

Stancik said he is depend-ing on the rice, rather than abundant water, to keep the teal around.

“We’re kind of an oasis in the desert right now,” he said. “If you don’t have a well to pump you may have some trouble.”

In upper North Texas, the teal aren’t so willing to stick around, seeming to prefer areas closer to the coast.

“There may be a few bluewings running through, but the places I hunt, they’re pretty infrequent,” said Zac Divine of Texoma Quack Addicts.

The habit of the ducks to migrate at the slightest change of conditions makes it harder for North Texas hunters to keep the birds patterned.

“It’s either a limit or noth-ing, and you’ll only have a couple of days to get them,” he said. “It’s hit or miss for sure.”

One factor in the lower rate of success as compared with coastal teal hunters could be the timing of the migration.

“I see them in the middle of August more than I see them during hunting sea-son,” Divine said. “Then come hunting season, they’re gone.”

Hunting shallow water

where the birds can easily feed tends to be more effec-tive than hunting larger bodies of water.

Areas with 6 inches of water or less are best.

Other hunters across the state are seeing increased numbers of teal, and almost all have been spotted on shal-low ponds or flooded crop-land. Many small groups are being seen, but much larger flocks are hanging around areas with flooded rice.

Areas closer to the coast continue to see more birds than the northern half of the state, but as teal hunters know, a small cold front can push new birds down over-night.

TealContinued From Page 4

BACK IN ACTION: Waterfowlers willing to brave warm temperatures and a high number of mosquitoes can start their duck hunting season nearly two months earlier than hunters who don’t take advantage of the early teal season. Photo by LSON.


start time.“I don’t like waking

up that early,” said Katelynn Whitacre, a 19-year-old Texas Woman’s University student. “Usually we have to get up really early to fish, and then I don’t even catch very much.”

For this trip, Mike was sure he had everything scouted out for success on Lake Bryson, located 58 miles northwest of Fort Worth.

“I had been to this spot and knew there were some big bass,” he said. “The differ-ence in this trip is I knew where the fish were, because I’ve caught as big as an 8 1/2-pounder in that spot.”

But there was a

catch.“It’s real hard to get

in because the ramp is so bad,” he said. “You need a four-wheel drive to launch a real boat. The ramp is out of the water with deep ruts, and it’s all gravel.”

Because of the lack of a reliable boat launch, the easiest way for the duo to access the lake was with kay-aks. Katelynn had attempted to catch largemouth from a kayak before, but it had never worked out for her.

“Last summer we tried, and when I went up to college I would come back on weekends and try,” she said. “We would

catch sand bass, but as for largemouth, we would not catch a single one.

“We’d fish for a long time and just get blown all over the lake.”

Despite her uncer-tainty, the pair made it to the previously scouted spot, where Katelynn’s dad set her up with a weed-less frog to cast. The decision turned out to be a good one as she was quickly hooked into a bass.

“I don’t think I realized how big of a fish I had on at first,” she said. “It moved me around a little bit and pulled me into some trees.”

Katelynn landed the 5-pound bass

after a short struggle. A good fish for any angler, she quickly broke her personal best with a 6-pounder soon after.

“Katelynn weighs about 90 pounds, so a 6-pound bass is pretty big,” Mike said. “I’ve caught a lot of fish, but get-ting her first bass at 5 pounds and 6 pounds tops any-thing I’ve ever done fishing — even if I catch a 20-pound bass, I don’t think I can top that.”

When she heard her dad was going fishing the next day with friends, Katelynn displayed a different outlook on waking up before sunrise.

“I never liked get-ting up early in the morning, and I’ve never volunteered to get up early,” she said. “But that time I was willing to get up early.”

Katelynn’s dad took notice of the change.

“Normally I tell her we’re getting up at 4, and she’s like ‘Can we wait until 5 or 6?’” Mike said. “This time she told me she’d get up at 3.”

LaregmouthContinued From Page 8

TOOK SOME TIME: After a year of trying to connect with a bass, Katelynn Whitacre of Lacy Lakeside caught a 5- and a 6-pound largemouth in the same morning. Photo by Mike Whitacre.

See video at LSONews.com


HEROES

Ten-year-old friends ALEX KIMMEL and MATTHEW KANNENBERG, from Dallas, were striper fishing on Lake Texoma recently when they caught these nice fish.

SHARE AN ADVENTUREn Want to share hunting and fishing photos with other Lone Star Outdoor News readers? Email them with contact and caption information to [email protected]. High-resolution original jpegs only. Mail prints to Heroes, Lone Star Outdoor News, P.O. Box 551695, Dallas, TX 75355.

While offshore fishing, TANNER, TAYLOR, PARKER and CHASE DENTON caught this big wahoo. All three young men helped land the fish.

MADDIE MCCLOUD, 12, took this fine buck, her first, last season

near Menard.

ADRIAN RODRIGUEZ of Harlingen caught this 45.5-inch redfish in the Lower Laguna Madre on July 14. The big red weighed 33 pounds and took 45 minutes to land on light tackle.

McKinney hunter NATHAN MCKOWN returned from his first trip to the Limpopo region of South Africa with several impressive trophies, including this warthog and impala.

Fishing his home waters of Lake Fork, angler MIKE MCCLANAHAN and dog MAX admire a big bass Mike caught recently.


PRODUCTS

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CORRECTION: The phone number for Pulsar, published in Lone Star Outdoor News’ August 24th edition, was incorrect. The correct number is (817) 225-1625.

>>

The phone number forLone Star Outdoor

August 24th edition, was incorrect. (817) 225-1625.

Lone Star Outdoor August 24th edition, was incorrect.

(817) 225-1625.

SERIOUS SCOUTERS CAMERA MOUNT: This universal camera mount from Crazy About

Outdoors is durable, fl exible and easy to adjust. This device offers hunters a secure way

to mount any camera at the best height and vantage point to capture the move-ment of whatever animal they are

planning to hunt. It is available in two models: a single (for about $26) and a

double (for about $36) mount.

www.crazyaboutoutdoors.com

ULTIMATE LINE WINDER: American Premier Corp.’s 2012 ICAST-winning accessory will

allow anglers to easily spool their spinning or casting reels without introducing twists in the line. This system has a rotating carriage that automatically elimi-

nates twists and tangles by turning the line as it is transferred to the spinning spool. This all-in-one tool holds fl at spools, 1/4-

pound spools and 1/2-pounds spools in perfect alignment with the reel. The line winder sells for just under $40.

(909) 590-8680www.americanpremiercorp.com

NAUTILUS ROTATING RAIL: Ballistic Tactical Systems has introduced

a rail system that will allow shoot-ers the ability to reconfi gure their fi rearm accessories without hav-ing to fi rst remove them from the

rails. Designed for any standard AR platform carbine rifl e, the 7-inch-long Nautilus Rotating Rail is a single unit built with two identical sections, each

composed of four 1913 Picatinny rails. Two easily accessible buttons rotate each section in 45-degree increments up to 360 degrees in either direction. Constructed of aircraft grade, hard-anodized aluminum and with stainless steel-grade ball bear-ings, the rail will perform even when exposed to water, sand and mud. Because of

the rail’s precise bearings, optical systems maintain zero after rail rotation. Available in dark earth, matte black, coyote tan and olive drab, the rail sells for about $550.

(954) 235-0690www.ballistatactical.com

KODIAK-LITE SLING: LimbSaver has designed a nar-rower, contoured sling for compound bows. Made from Navcom (noise and vibration control mate-rial), which absorbs the transmission of vibration, this lightweight, nonslip sling reduces shoulder fatigue and is comfortable for both left- or right-handed shooters. Its nylon webbing is tested at 2,000-plus pounds of strength. Easy to install with its heavy-duty, quick-release buckles, the sling is available in black and camo. It sells for about $25.

(877) 257-2761www.limbsaver.com

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JIM SHOCKEY SIGNATURE SERIES SAFE: Cannon Safe’s latest high-security safe is built of heavy-gauge steel and has a 4-inch double-steel composite door with

1.5-inch active-locking bolts on the top and side. The beige safe features camo accents and a Jim

Shockey decal. Inside the safe, the adjustable shelving offers fi rearm owners the ability to con-

fi gure the space in a way that that best suits their needs. A door organizer kit attached to the inset

door panel offers additional accessible storage for pistols, magazines, knives, etc. Multidirectional

LED lights that activate when the door opens illu-minate the interior. There also

is a power system that will keep electronics connected

and charged. The gun safe’s contents are accessed with a

high-security commercial grade electronic lock that is protected

by three layers of steel hard plate. The safe, which has a pre-drilled

bottom for bolting to the fl oor, boasts a fi re rating of 1,200 degrees for 60 minutes. It is available in two models: a 560-pound, 60-inch

by 30-inch by 24-inch safe with a 24-gun capacity and a 730-pound, 60-inch by 40-inch by

24-inch safe with a 36-gun capacity. The safe sells for about $2,172 to $2,400, depending on size.

(800) 242-1055www.cannonsafe.com

Cannon Safe’s

bottom for bolting to the fl oor, boasts a fi re rating of 1,200 degrees for 60 minutes. It is


NORTH SABINE: Trout are fair to good under birds and pods of shad on soft plas-tics. Redfi sh are good in the marsh. Drifters have worked slicks on shad and plastics.

SOUTH SABINE: Trout are fair to good under birds and pods of shad. Trout are good at the jetty on live bait and top-waters. Flounder are fair at the mouths of the bayous on a falling tide.

BOLIVAR: Trout are good on the south shoreline on soft plastics. Trout, black drum, sand trout and redfi sh are good at Rollover Pass. Croaker are good on fresh shrimp.

TRINITY BAY: Trout are fair for drifters working pods of shad

and mullet. Stiff south winds have made fi shing tough. Redfi sh are good on live bait around the reefs. Redfi sh are fair to good at the spillway on live bait.

EAST GALVESTON BAY: Trout and sand trout are fair for drifters working deep shell on plastics and fresh shrimp. Whiting and sand trout are good on the edge of the Intracoastal on fresh shrimp.

WEST GALVESTON BAY: Sand trout and redfi sh are fair in the surf and around San Luis Pass on live shrimp and top-waters. Sheepshead, redfi sh and black drum are good at the jetty on shrimp and crabs.

TEXAS CITY: Trout are fair

around Dollar Reef and April Fool’s Reef on live shrimp and croakers. Redfi sh are fair to good in Moses Lake on crabs and shrimp.

FREEPORT: Sand trout and croakers are fair at San Luis Pass on shrimp. Black drum are good on the reefs in Bas-trop Bay.

EAST MATAGORDA BAY: Trout are fair for drifters on live shrimp over humps and scattered shell. Waders have found scattered catches on the shorelines on small top-waters and plastics.

WEST MATAGORDA BAY: Trout are fair on sand and grass humps on soft plastics and top-waters. Redfi sh are fair

on live shrimp in Oyster Lake, Crab Lake and Shell Island.

PORT O'CONNOR: Trout and redfi sh are fair on live bait over sand, grass and shell in San Antonio Bay and around Pass Cavallo. Trout and redfi sh are fair for drifters working the back lakes with live shrimp.

ROCKPORT: Redfi sh are good on mullet on the Estes Flats and around Mud Island. Trout are fair at Spalding Bight on live bait and small top-waters.

PORT ARANSAS: Redfi sh are fair at East Flats on top-waters and scented plastics. Trout, redfi sh and sheepshead are fair to good at the jetty on shrimp and croakers. Off-

shore is good for amberjack, kingfi sh, tuna and dolphin.

CORPUS CHRISTI: Trout are fair on the edge of the spoils on scented plastics, piggy perch and live shrimp. Redfi sh are fair in the guts along shore-lines and mullet and piggy perch.

BAFFIN BAY: Trout are good on piggy perch, top-waters and plum plastics around rocks and grass. Redfi sh are fair to good in knee–deep water on small top-waters and piggy perch.

PORT MANSFIELD: Trout are fair to good while working deep sand and grass on soft plastics. Redfi sh are fair to good while drifting potholes

on top-waters and soft plas-tics under a popping cork. Offshore is good for kingfi sh, ling and dolphin.

SOUTH PADRE: Trout, redfi sh and snook are fair to good in South Bay on live bait. Tarpon and snook are good on mullet at the jetty. Trout are fair over deep sand and grass on scented plastics and live shrimp.

PORT ISABEL: Trout and redfi sh are fair to good while drifting sand and grass fl ats on live shrimp and scented plastics under popping corks. Redfi sh are fair along the shorelines on mullet and piggy perch.

— TPWD

Sponsored by

TEXAS SALTWATER FISHING REPORTGame of numbers

NUECES BAY — The trout have been biting a little better than the redfi sh, according to Capt. Pat Tabor.

“It’s been a little slow, but we’re picking up some pretty good fi sh lately,” he said. “It’s mainly trout right now — not a lot of big ones, but good numbers.”

Tabor said artifi cials will work, but he has been throwing mostly croaker or piggy perch. He has seen the redfi sh coming closer to the shoreline.

“I usually go to my reefs fi rst thing and catch my trout,” he said. “Then I go to the shorelines, and I mean right up against it, for reds.”

Tabor said he’s looking forward to the summer heat ending, because the cooler weather should have the redfi sh schooling up more, and bring in some bigger trout.

To contact Capt. Pat Tabor, call (210) 643-0297.

Isaac’s effectSABINE LAKE — Tropical Storm Isaac has passed and left the area with good fi shing,

according to Capt. Randy Foreman.“There’s a lot of bird action and a lot of redfi sh, and trout are plentiful,” he said. “We’re not

catching as big of fi sh as we were, but we’re catching a lot of schooled fi sh.”Isaac has caused the water clarity to be more stained than usual.

“Ninety-nine percent of my stuff is plastics,” Foreman said. “I’m throwing plastics in a glow pattern, and also pumpkinseed chartreuse because the water is off-color.”

In addition to the redfi sh and trout, Foreman is seeing big-ger fl ounder starting to move. The south end of the lake has been

good, as have the jetties.To contact Capt. Randy Foreman, call (409) 719-6067.

Not gung-ho yetWEST MATAGORDA BAY — The redfi sh aren’t in full swing, but trout are hit-

ting hard, according to Capt. Tommy Countz. “There’s so much bait, these fi sh are fat,” he said. “One of those hitting a

top-water is like someone dropping an anvil in the water. These fi sh are pretty juiced up.”

Primarily wading over scattered shell and grass, Countz said the trout have been on the smaller size, with the biggest on his most recent trip 25 inches.

He plans to start targeting redfi sh more throughout September. Anglers throwing live or artifi cial shrimp should have good luck.

“They’ve not really gone gung-ho yet,” he said. “I did see a bunch of birds working on shrimp, and all the trout I’ve cleaned, their bellies are full of little white shrimp.”

To contact Capt. Tommy Countz, call (281) 450-4037.— John Keith

SABINE LAKE — Tropical Storm Isaac has passed and left the area with good fi shing,

“There’s so much bait, these fi sh are fat,” he said. “One of those hitting a top-water is like someone dropping an anvil in the water. These fi sh are pretty juiced up.”

been on the smaller size, with the biggest on his most recent trip 25 inches. He plans to start targeting redfi sh more throughout September. Anglers throwing live or

artifi cial shrimp should have good luck.

ting hard, according to Capt. Tommy Countz. “There’s so much bait, these fi sh are fat,” he said. “One of those hitting a

top-water is like someone dropping an anvil in the water. These fi sh are pretty

He plans to start targeting redfi sh more throughout September. Anglers throwing live or

Not gung-ho yet


caught on electric reels in 1,200 feet of water.

“I like fishing with the electric reels because it gives you the ability to catch deep-water, awesome-tasting fish,” Downs said. “The golden tilefish has an excellent, rich and buttery meat, like a lot of those really cold-water fish.”

Downs said he likes using the electric reels to get fish in the boat, but it does take away the traditional fun of fighting a fish.

“I don’t like the lack of effort and partici-pation required,” he said. ‘But I also under-

stand it is not feasible to reel up a fish, or multiple fish, from past 1,000 feet.”

The setup for golden tilefish was fairly straightforward — an electric reel with braided line, a big weight to keep the line and bait on the bottom, barrel swivels for multiple hooks and cut squid for bait.

The biggest trick is finding the fishing grounds off the coast. Golden tilefish live in deep water with a muddy bottom that they burrow into to escape danger.

Capt. Lee Weidner likes to put the line in his hand to feel for the fish to bite. He usually waits for several fish to hook them-selves before flipping the switch for the reel to haul the fish up from the bottom.

“Sometimes I get greedy and end up missing one,” Weidner said. “It’s a lot like handlining, but when the fish hits, just press the button.”

Corpus Christi angler Blaine Huey recently traveled offshore to deep-drop for bottom fish.

“It was great to put some fish in the cooler,” Huey said. “But I enjoyed some of the other stuff we did more because you actually felt like you were fighting the fish. If the entire trip had revolved around the electric reels, I’m not sure it would have felt like real fishing.

“But I got over it when we started eating those deep-water fish. They taste great.”

ReelContinued From Page 8

ALL ABOARD: Several golden tilefish are hoisted aboard after being caught on an electric reel at a depth of 1,200 feet. Photo by Conor Harrison, LSON.

Most trout have been caught with small perch, along with scented plastics, though the fish aren’t feeding as aggres-sively.

“I don’t think the trout is going to pick up; I think it’s redfish season,” he said. “We’re not filling up the box but there’s still some out there — the deeper water north of the convention center usually has some trout in them; you just have to twitch your bait slow to give them time to find it and react.”

In Port Mansfield, Capt. Jack Klostermann is experiencing marginally better luck.

“It’s actually been pretty slow the last couple of weeks,” he said. “August is always my least favorite month to fish, with the Lower Laguna Madre so shallow and hot.”

Klostermann also believes the best trout fishing for the year is behind anglers.

“The last week the bay fishing has picked up,” he said. “I wouldn’t say it’ll be a lot better in September or October, but it is picking up.”

Some anglers are managing limits, but not with a stringer of trophy fish. Most trout caught are between 15 and 17 inches.

“It’s really the wrong time of the year to catch the big, solid fish,” he said. “And when you catch a big fish now, they’re pretty lean; they’re long and they look like greyhounds.”

Fishing had been tough enough that he started fishing strictly with croaker, but soft plastics are bringing more bites now, according to Klostermann.

“It’s been a little on the slow side here lately, some days we’ve had to work fairly hard,” he said. “The trout need some fin-ger mullet and cooler water.”

Capt. Mark Atkinson, (956) 364-2001.Capt. Adrian Flandes, (956) 572-0130.Capt. Jack Klostermann, (956) 245-5008.

TroutContinued From Page 9


While his groups did well, other testimonies weren’t as positive.

“It was not a barrel burner, but it was steady,” he said. “I talked to the game warden who had checked the whole area, and he said our guys had way more birds than others.”

In Limestone County, hunters were on native sunflowers.

“Coolidge was up and down,” Steenbeke said. “The first day was good, the second day was eh, and the third day was good.”

Cold fronts will be key in the coming weeks to bring down new birds.

“The season starts good, gets crappy in the middle, and at the end it gets good again when the northern birds come down,” he said. “Overall it wasn’t bad — we had about two out of three people get their limits.”

Reports of below-average hunts came from the Cisco, Throckmorton, Brownwood, Graford and Dublin areas that normally pro-duce on opening day, while Weatherford-area hunters had good success. Hunters able

to move to different locations to find the birds fared best.

In the South Zone, outfitters are hoping the weather stays steady enough to keep the birds around.

“We’re starting to get a lot of birds in,” said Clay Knipp of Q2 Ranch, located 45 miles southwest of San Antonio. “But the way dove are, they come and go — you’ll see really big numbers, they’ll move, and then you’ll see more again.”

Knipp has seen solid amounts of dove over the summer, but said recent weeks have seen a growth in numbers as the South Zone opener approaches.

“This past week they’re starting to really move in,” he said. “But with a migratory bird, you just can’t control what they do.”

Ford Ranch, (325) 286-4572.1A Hunting, (210) 872-2771.Q2 Ranch, (972) 839-5985.

Dove openerContinued From Page 1

USFWS postpones national survey of dove huntersAfter being touted by many state agencies, including Texas Parks and Wildlife

Department, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service mysteriously postponed their 2012 National Dove Hunter Survey.

According to Chris Tollefson, chief of communications for USFWS, the survey is currently undergoing additional review.

“We appreciate the hard work of the state fish and wildlife agencies and flyway councils who have partnered with us to develop the survey,” Tollefson said. “Collectively, we want to make sure the survey results in a constructive outcome, rather than becoming a source of potential controversy. That's why we are going to take the time to ensure that hunters and our other conservation partners completely understand what information we are collecting and how we intend to use the data we collect.

“Once the review is completed, we will work together to reach out to our partners and the public before distributing the survey to inform them about its content, objectives and uses.”

Hunting groups had complained the survey, which included questions about the use of lead shot, could be used as a means to ban the use of lead shot on dove.

“The Service and our state agency partners know that reliable information on hunter atti-tudes is important to ensure sound stewardship of mourning dove,” Tollefson added.

The new survey should be out sometime next year. — Conor Harrison, LSON



we might as well throw them all of our bait. It will be time to move.”

As if on cue, on the second fish pulled from the wreck — a nice red snapper that had to be thrown back — a dolphin surfaced off the bow, raced under the boat and snatched the snapper on its way back down to the wreck.

One more grouper was pulled from the wreck, and then pulled off the line, before the group packed up and headed for another wreck.

Dolphins trailing boats look-ing for an easy meal is nothing new. Offshore anglers know bat-tling sharks and barracudas for their catch is part of the game. But when “flipper” shows up, it is game over for the angler.

“Yes, they are a big problem,” said Capt. Dan Hilburn of Capt. Kelly’s Deep Sea Headquarters in Port Aransas. “Sometimes, after we have had a fish on and are reel-ing it in, they are literally hanging onto the kingfish or snapper.

“We end up a lot of times with half a fish.”

However, Hilburn said the pres-ence of dolphins will occasionally signal the bite is on for other tar-geted species.

“It’s funny,” he said. “If dol-phins are there, a lot of the time the bite will be on. The baitfish are very active or the dolphins wouldn’t be there. But a lot of peo-ple do think it is a bad omen.

“Sometimes they will shut the bite down completely.”

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Galveston Bay Ecosystem Leader Bill Balboa said he hears regularly from anglers about dolphins snatching fish from lines.

“I hear it with some frequency,” he said. “We had an intern here recently that was collecting sam-ples from party boats, and she wit-nessed this a lot. They would vent and throw back an undersized snapper and the dolphins would eat it on the way to the bottom.

“There isn’t a lot you can do.”Balboa said it is against the law

to harass dolphins in any way.“We are working with biolo-

gists to see if there is anything we can do to minimize encounters,” Balboa said, “but that is honestly more for the dolphin than the

angler.“If they are all over the place and

the fishing is good, I’m not sure what to tell people except maybe move.”

Lance Robinson, TPWD’s regional director for the Upper Coast, said the problem isn’t con-

fined to Texas waters.“We hear about this all over

the Gulf,” he said. “In fact, NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) does figure predator mortality during their stocking assessments when determining limits for fish.”

FlipperContinued From Page 1

GET IT IN QUICK: This red snapper was gobbled by dolphins after being released. When the dolphins show up, many offshore captains head to other spots. Photo by Conor Harrison, LSON.


only is it a nice fish, but it is number 30,000 on my boat since January of 2008.’”

Kirk said he remembered someone special when the fish was caught.

“I am 68 years old; I grew up fish-ing, and even raising catfish fingerlings with my dad, and we never caught fish like I have learned to catch them,” he said. “It would have meant a lot if he were here to see such a feat, but know-ing that he is watching it unfold from above is a great feeling.”

Kirk said Harvey had no idea he was about to catch a milestone for the boat.

“It was also special that the client did not know he was about to catch num-ber 30,000 until the fish was in the boat,” he said. “He was shocked and I was excited and could not wait to text my wife and kids that I had reached that milestone. I have had many friends that

fish a lot — even guides — tell me that those numbers are something most do not even dream possible, let alone hope to reach.”

Harvey said he was shocked at the number.

“When I caught the fish, he stood up and shook my hand,” Harvey said. “I didn’t think the fish was that big, but then he presented me with a rod and reel. I told him he didn’t have to do that.

“It was pretty awesome. It was very nice of Weldon.”

Kirk said he hopes to stay in good health long enough for another mile-stone.

“I am thankful that I am healthy and hope to continue adding to that num-ber and when I am given the opportu-nity to reach 50,000, I will give some-thing very special to that lucky angler.”

to make a suction area the size of a dime. Though users of this gadget still passionately swear to its effi-cacy, science refutes this thoroughly. A powerful suction is undeniably produced, but this actually results in a collapse of the fang puncture tracts. Not only does this prevent pulling any of the venom from the wound, it also stops passive oozing that often occurs spontaneously — an action that allows some of the venom to leave the bite on its own.

The gold standard for medical intervention is the administration of antivenom.

Once venom is introduced to the human body, a cascade of neg-ative events begins.

Like any chemical reaction, the events will continue until some sort of equilibrium is reached. In the case of a mouse or other prey, this means immobilization, death and preparation for diges-tion. For humans, the effects are similar, though the death and digestion part are usually local-ized in the form of blistering, skin loss and/or tissue death near the bite. Complications in the blood stream can be systemic.

The antivenom is the only thing that neutralizes the venom. Therefore, the overwhelmingly accepted philosophy is that the sooner a bite victim gets it, the better.

The antivenom gets almost as much attention for its price as it does its effectiveness. One vial costs a little under $2,000, with some cases requiring 12-16 vials. Almost 60 percent of bite victims are hospitalized, with most end-ing up in an intensive care unit.

Bill underwent intensive wound care with a physical therapist in an effort to restore some of the blood supply to the back of his finger. After getting out of the hospital, he continued his recovery from home wearing a small device that applied a continuous and painful low-grade suction to the wound in an effort to accelerate healing.

As it turned out, the story did not end well. The wound did not progress after six weeks and a skin graft never became a viable option. The finger was amputated.

As with any trauma, the best course to maintain optimal health is one of avoidance.

Attention to specific habitat, use of protective footwear or cloth-ing such as snakeproof chaps and avoidance of physical contact with snakes (dead or alive) is a pound of cure well worth considering before you enter the field.

If you do feel the need to bring a tool with you to help manage a venomous snakebite, make it a cell phone so you can get medical help as soon as possible.

SnakebitesContinued From Page 6

MilestoneContinued From Page 11


much better.“You don’t have to have the ani-

mal shined up like a Christmas tree, you just have to see the eyes and know what’s there,” he said. “When they’re 60 to 70 yards from the truck, there’s literally more light on an animal than you have in the daytime.”

Other predator hunters aren’t so quick to celebrate the use of white lights.

“My personal preference is red, but I have used some white lights in the past,” said Utopia-based hunting guide Clay Pope. “I use a red light because it’s easy, and it works good for us.”

Pope said the high rates of success using night vision as an example of why the dimmer the light produces better hunting, and why he sticks to red.

“With night vision and no light at all, they respond a whole lot better — they’ll get right in your hip pocket,” he said. “We tried to use some white light in my videos, and it seemed like it didn’t affect 20 per-cent, but 80 per-cent didn’t get as close as they would with a red light.”

Another fac-tor in the light decision is the education of the predators.

“From white to red to night vision, it seemed like you could go back in a ranch a whole lot sooner when you’re not using white light,”

Pope said. “With a white light it seems the success rate goes down drastically; it might work the first time, but after you educate them it goes way down.”

Jim Roche, a hunting guide based in Eldorado, points to the intensity of the light as an important factor.

“The most important thing is the use of a rheostat; it makes all the dif-ference in the world,” Roche said. “You only want to use enough light to reflect an oncoming animal’s eyes within the field of fire. If you’re hunting in a clearing where you may have 80 yards across, there’s no need to use enough power to reflect their eyes from 200.”

The rheostat adjusts the intensity of the light, which helps hunters adapt to different calling setups and situations.

“It doesn’t matter white or red light, if you’re using too much power he’ll blink, and if there’s not enough light he’s going to see you,” he said.

Roche has turned to using a white light with the lens colored with a red sharpie, to try and get the best of both worlds. And though he believes red is a safer bet, there is an additional benefit

to white light.“With the

white light I have the ability to increase the power to see that bedded white-tailed deer or cow I don’t want to shoot, that I could have thought might be a predator,” he said. “The rheostat on the light is the second most important thing in a calling sit-uation, sec-ond only to the setup of the call-ing location.”

PredatorContinued From Page 4


Almost any deer hunter has seen the sight when checking the card from their game camera — a deer here, a deer there.

And coons. Lots of coons.Richard Heilbrun, conser-

vative outreach coordinator for Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, said a raccoon’s behavior can have a devastat-ing impact on hunters trying to feed other animals.

“Captive raccoons are usu-ally fed about a half-pound

per day, but I think that’s dangerously conservative for estimating what a raccoon is capable of consuming at a deer feeder,” he said. “I think an estimate of 1 to 5 pounds per night is probably appro-priate.”

Research into the subject has shown proof of what hunters have known for years — raccoons eat a lot of feed.

“There have been several studies on nontarget con-sumption of supplemental feed, and the usual estimate is that 40 to 75 percent of

feeder activity is from rac-coons,” Heilbrun said. “The one study that attempted to extrapolate weight supposed that about 50 percent of feed at a quail feeder went to rac-coons.”

Heilbrun said that if the food is available, the rac-coons will be there.

“All wild animals appreci-ate and take advantage of a free lunch,” he said. “Because raccoons are highly adapt-able and have an extremely flexible diet, they can take

Raccoons ripping off hunters

See RACCOONS, Page 28

FIGHTING FOR FEED: Raccoons can eat up to 50 percent of feed put out for other animals. Photo by John Keith, LSON.

LET IT SHINE: A new wave of thinking has predator hunters implementing white lights to better view their targets. Photo by Carnivore.


LastOct. 8

NewSept. 16

Solunar | Sun times | Moon timesMoon Phases

FOR THE TABLEOUTDOOR PUZZLER | By Wilbur “Wib” Lundeen Solution on Page 37

Legend: Major=2 hours. Minor=1 hour. Times centered on the major-minor window. F=Full Moon, N=New Moon, Q=Quarter > = Peak Activity. For other locations, subtract 1 minute per 12 miles east of a location, and add 1 min-ute per 12 miles west of a location.

Sun Moon Tides| |

12 dove breasts1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper3/4 tsp. oreganoSalt and pepper6 sprigs fresh parsley, chopped

Cut the dove breasts into small chunks and place in a bowl.

Sprinkle with cayenne, oregano, salt and pepper and lightly stir to coat. Heat a little oil over low heat in a skillet. When pan is hot, add dove and sprinkle in parsley. Cook to medium rare, stirring occasionally. Remove and drain on paper towels.

— backwoodsbound.com

2 hard-boiled eggs, shelled and chopped2 ounces cheese, grated1 tbsp. chopped parsley1 1/4 cups fresh white bread-crumbs1/2 stick butter, meltedSalt and pepper2 fl ounder, fi lleted and skinned

Mix the eggs with the cheese, parsley and two ounces of the breadcrumbs. Bind with the but-ter and add seasoning. Spread this mixture over the skinned side of the fi llets and roll them up, start-

ing from the tail end; secure them if necessary with a wooden cock-tail stick. Place the fi llets close together in a buttered shallow ovenproof dish, sprinkle with the remaining breadcrumbs and bake uncovered in the oven at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes, until the fi sh is tender and the breadcrumbs crisp on top. The liq-uid that comes from the fi sh as it cooks can be strained off and used with milk to make a white or pars-ley sauce to serve with the fi sh.

— easyfi shrecipes.com

Stuffed rolled fl ounder

FullSept. 30First

Sept. 23Texas Coast TidesSabine Pass, jettyDate Time Height Time Height Time Height Time HeightSep 14 2:56 AM 2.7H 7:58 AM 2.0L 1:44 PM 2.8H 8:19 PM 1.0LSep 15 3:10 AM 2.7H 8:31 AM 1.6L 2:51 PM 2.9H 9:00 PM 1.3LSep 16 3:23 AM 2.7H 9:09 AM 1.2L 3:59 PM 3.0H 9:41 PM 1.6LSep 17 3:37 AM 2.7H 9:52 AM 0.8L 5:08 PM 3.1H 10:24 PM 2.0LSep 18 3:52 AM 2.8H 10:39 AM 0.5L 6:22 PM 3.1H 11:08 PM 2.4LSep 19 4:07 AM 2.9H 11:31 AM 0.3L 7:41 PM 3.2H 11:55 PM 2.7LSep 20 4:21 AM 3.0H 12:29 PM 0.2L 9:09 PM 3.2HSep 21 12:48 AM 3.0L 4:33 AM 3.1H 1:34 PM 0.2L 10:44 PM 3.2HSep 22 2:48 PM 0.3LSep 23 12:07 AM 3.2H 4:07 PM 0.4LSep 24 12:59 AM 3.2H 5:22 PM 0.5LSep 25 1:32 AM 3.1H 7:06 AM 2.6L 10:47 AM 2.8H 6:27 PM 0.7LSep 26 1:56 AM 3.0H 7:33 AM 2.3L 12:16 PM 2.9H 7:23 PM 1.0LSep 27 2:16 AM 2.9H 8:02 AM 2.0L 1:30 PM 2.9H 8:11 PM 1.3LSep 28 2:34 AM 2.8H 8:32 AM 1.7L 2:36 PM 3.0H 8:53 PM 1.6L

Galveston Bay entrance, south jettyDate Time Height Time Height Time Height Time HeightSep 14 3:43 AM 2.2H 8:24 AM 1.6L 2:31 PM 2.2H 8:45 PM 0.8LSep 15 3:57 AM 2.2H 8:57 AM 1.3L 3:38 PM 2.3H 9:26 PM 1.0LSep 16 4:10 AM 2.2H 9:35 AM 1.0L 4:46 PM 2.4H 10:07 PM 1.3LSep 17 4:24 AM 2.2H 10:18 AM 0.7L 5:55 PM 2.5H 10:50 PM 1.6LSep 18 4:39 AM 2.2H 11:05 AM 0.4L 7:09 PM 2.5H 11:34 PM 1.9LSep 19 4:54 AM 2.3H 11:57 AM 0.2L 8:28 PM 2.5HSep 20 12:21 AM 2.2L 5:08 AM 2.4H 12:55 PM 0.1L 9:56 PM 2.5HSep 21 1:14 AM 2.4L 5:20 AM 2.4H 2:00 PM 0.1L 11:31 PM 2.5HSep 22 3:14 PM 0.2LSep 23 12:54 AM 2.6H 4:33 PM 0.3LSep 24 1:46 AM 2.5H 5:48 PM 0.4LSep 25 2:19 AM 2.5H 7:32 AM 2.1L 11:34 AM 2.3H 6:53 PM 0.6LSep 26 2:43 AM 2.4H 7:59 AM 1.8L 1:03 PM 2.3H 7:49 PM 0.8LSep 27 3:03 AM 2.3H 8:28 AM 1.6L 2:17 PM 2.3H 8:37 PM 1.0LSep 28 3:21 AM 2.3H 8:58 AM 1.3L 3:23 PM 2.4H 9:19 PM 1.3L

San Luis PassDate Time Height Time Height Time Height Time Height Sep 14 4:13 AM 1.3H 9:20 AM 1.0L 3:01 PM 1.3H 9:41 PM 0.5LSep 15 4:27 AM 1.3H 9:53 AM 0.8L 4:08 PM 1.4H 10:22 PM 0.6LSep 16 4:40 AM 1.3H 10:31 AM 0.6L 5:16 PM 1.4H 11:03 PM 0.8LSep 17 4:54 AM 1.3H 11:14 AM 0.4L 6:25 PM 1.5H 11:46 PM 1.0LSep 18 5:09 AM 1.3H 12:01 PM 0.2L 7:39 PM 1.5HSep 19 12:30 AM 1.1L 5:24 AM 1.4H 12:53 PM 0.1L 8:58 PM 1.5HSep 20 1:17 AM 1.3L 5:38 AM 1.4H 1:51 PM 0.1L 10:26 PM 1.5HSep 21 2:10 AM 1.4L 5:50 AM 1.5H 2:56 PM 0.1LSep 22 12:01 AM 1.5H 4:10 PM 0.1LSep 23 1:24 AM 1.5H 5:29 PM 0.2LSep 24 2:16 AM 1.5H 6:44 PM 0.3LSep 25 2:49 AM 1.5H 8:28 AM 1.2L 12:04 PM 1.4H 7:49 PM 0.4LSep 26 3:13 AM 1.4H 8:55 AM 1.1L 1:33 PM 1.4H 8:45 PM 0.5LSep 27 3:33 AM 1.4H 9:24 AM 1.0L 2:47 PM 1.4H 9:33 PM 0.6LSep 28 3:51 AM 1.4H 9:54 AM 0.8L 3:53 PM 1.4H 10:15 PM 0.8L

Freeport HarborDate Time Height Time Height Time Height Time HeightSep 14 3:33 AM 1.8H 9:31 AM 1.2L 2:26 PM 1.6H 9:09 PM 0.5LSep 15 3:50 AM 1.7H 9:41 AM 1.0L 3:30 PM 1.7H 9:58 PM 0.7LSep 16 4:06 AM 1.6H 10:02 AM 0.8L 4:34 PM 1.8H 10:50 PM 0.9LSep 17 4:22 AM 1.5H 10:32 AM 0.5L 5:39 PM 1.9H 11:47 PM 1.1LSep 18 4:35 AM 1.5H 11:11 AM 0.3L 6:49 PM 2.0HSep 19 12:58 AM 1.4L 4:44 AM 1.5H 11:57 AM 0.2L 8:06 PM 2.0 HSep 20 12:51 PM 0.1L 9:31 PM 2.1HSep 21 1:55 PM 0.1L 11:03 PM 2.1HSep 22 3:09 PM 0.1LSep 23 12:25 AM 2.1H 4:30 PM 0.2LSep 24 1:23 AM 2.1H 5:49 PM 0.3LSep 25 2:03 AM 2.0H 8:20 AM 1.5L 11:11 AM 1.6H 7:00 PM 0.4LSep 26 2:31 AM 1.9H 8:32 AM 1.3L 12:47 PM 1.6H 8:02 PM 0.5LSep 27 2:51 AM 1.8H 8:52 AM 1.1L 2:05 PM 1.7H 8:59 PM 0.7LSep 28 3:06 AM 1.7H 9:15 AM 1.0L 3:11 PM 1.8H 9:51 PM 0.9L

South Padre IslandDate Time Height Time Height Time Height Time HeightSep 14 3:27 AM 1.6H 8:33 AM 1.3L 1:41 PM 1.6H 8:51 PM 0.7LSep 15 3:30 AM 1.5H 8:56 AM 1.1L 3:01 PM 1.7H 9:44 PM 0.8LSep 16 3:30 AM 1.4H 9:26 AM 0.8L 4:17 PM 1.7H 10:40 PM 1.0LSep 17 3:26 AM 1.3H 10:02 AM 0.5L 5:35 PM 1.8H 11:42 PM 1.2LSep 18 3:17 AM 1.3H 10:45 AM 0.2L 6:57 PM 1.8HSep 19 11:33 AM 0.0L 8:29 PM 1.9HSep 20 12:28 PM -0.1L 10:10 PM 1.9HSep 21 1:30 PM -0.1L 11:47 PM 2.0HSep 22 2:39 PM 0.0LSep 23 12:59 AM 2.0H 3:52 PM 0.1LSep 24 1:44 AM 2.0H 5:06 PM 0.3LSep 25 2:11 AM 1.9H 6:17 PM 0.5LSep 26 2:26 AM 1.8H 7:31 AM 1.5L 11:48 AM 1.7H 7:22 PM 0.7LSep 27 2:35 AM 1.7H 7:52 AM 1.3L 1:30 PM 1.8H 8:23 PM 0.9LSep 28 2:40 AM 1.6H 8:21 AM 1.1L 2:50 PM 1.9H 9:20 PM 1.1L

Port O’ConnorDate Time Height Time Height Time Height Time HeightSep 14 8:04 AM 0.9H 11:19 AM 0.9L 2:35 PM 0.9H 11:33 PM 0.7LSep 15 7:23 AM 0.9H 11:37 AM 0.8L 5:32 PM 0.9HSep 16 12:11 AM 0.8L 5:27 AM 0.9H 12:09 PM 0.7L 8:16 PM 1.0HSep 17 12:48 AM 0.9L 4:16 AM 1.0H 12:48 PM 0.6L 10:49 PM 1.1HSep 18 1:16 AM 1.0L 4:03 AM 1.1H 1:33 PM 0.5LSep 19 3:56 AM 1.2H 2:25 PM 0.4LSep 20 4:10 AM 1.3H 3:24 PM 0.4LSep 21 4:54 AM 1.3H 4:30 PM 0.4LSep 22 5:47 AM 1.4H 5:43 PM 0.4LSep 23 6:40 AM 1.4H 6:56 PM 0.4LSep 24 7:26 AM 1.3H 8:06 PM 0.5LSep 25 7:40 AM 1.3H 9:08 PM 0.6LSep 26 6:53 AM 1.2H 10:02 PM 0.7LSep 27 6:37 AM 1.1H 11:07 AM 1.0L 3:05 PM 1.1H 10:46 PM 0.8LSep 28 6:25 AM 1.1H 11:36 AM 0.9L 6:40 PM 1.1H 11:19 PM 1.0L

RockportDate Time Height Time Height Time Height Time HeightSep 14 3:35 PM 0.5H 11:35 PM 0.4LSep 15 6:41 AM 0.5H 11:51 AM 0.4L 5:53 PM 0.5H 11:49 PM 0.4LSep 16 5:57 AM 0.5H 1:10 PM 0.4LSep 17 5:26 AM 0.5H 2:10 PM 0.3LSep 18 5:14 AM 0.6H 3:05 PM 0.3LSep 19 5:31 AM 0.6H 4:01 PM 0.3LSep 20 6:11 AM 0.6H 4:58 PM 0.3LSep 21 7:08 AM 0.7H 5:58 PM 0.3LSep 22 8:13 AM 0.7H 6:57 PM 0.3LSep 23 9:23 AM 0.7H 7:55 PM 0.3LSep 24 10:32 AM 0.7H 8:46 PM 0.3LSep 25 11:43 AM 0.7H 9:29 PM 0.4LSep 26 12:59 PM 0.6H 10:00 PM 0.4LSep 27 2:30 PM 0.6H 10:18 PM 0.5LSep 28 4:56 AM 0.6H 10:18 AM 0.5L 4:36 PM 0.6H 10:16 PM 0.5L

Houston2012 A.M. P.M. SUN MOONSep-Oct Minor Major Minor Major Rises Sets Rises Sets14 Fri > 4:10 10:22 4:35 10:47 07:04 07:28 5:34a 6:22p 15 Sat N 4:56 11:08 5:21 11:33 07:05 07:26 6:35a 6:59p 16 Sun > 5:45 11:58 6:11 12:24 07:05 07:25 7:37a 7:38p 17 Mon > 6:39 12:26 7:06 12:53 07:06 07:24 8:42a 8:19p 18 Tue > 7:38 1:24 8:06 1:52 07:06 07:23 9:48a 9:04p 19 Wed 8:41 2:26 9:10 2:55 07:07 07:21 10:55a 9:54p 20 Thu 9:46 3:31 10:16 4:01 07:07 07:20 12:02p 10:48p 21 Fri 10:51 4:36 11:21 5:06 07:08 07:19 1:05p 11:47p 22 Sat 11:53 5:38 ----- 6:07 07:08 07:18 2:03p NoMoon 23 Sun Q 12:22 6:36 12:50 7:04 07:09 07:16 2:56p 12:48a 24 Mon 1:15 7:29 1:42 7:56 07:09 07:15 3:42p 1:50a 25 Tue 2:04 8:17 2:29 8:42 07:10 07:14 4:24p 2:52a 26 Wed 2:49 9:01 3:13 9:25 07:10 07:13 5:02p 3:52a 27 Thu 3:31 9:42 3:54 10:05 07:11 07:12 5:37p 4:50a 28 Fri 4:12 10:23 4:35 10:46 07:12 07:10 6:10p 5:47a 29 Sat > 4:54 11:06 5:17 11:28 07:12 07:09 6:44p 6:43a 30 Sun > 5:38 11:50 6:01 ----- 07:13 07:08 7:19p 7:38a01 Mon F 6:25 12:14 6:48 12:37 07:13 07:07 7:55p 8:33a 02 Tue > 7:14 1:03 7:38 1:26 07:14 07:05 8:33p 9:28a 03 Wed > 8:06 1:54 8:30 2:18 07:14 07:04 9:14p 10:22a

Port Aransas, H. Caldwell PierDate Time Height Time Height Time Height Time HeightSep 14 3:27 AM 1.8H 8:46 AM 1.4L 1:59 PM 1.8H 8:52 PM 0.8LSep 15 3:35 AM 1.8H 9:09 AM 1.2L 3:14 PM 2.0H 9:41 PM 1.1LSep 16 3:40 AM 1.8H 9:38 AM 1.0L 4:27 PM 2.1H 10:34 PM 1.4LSep 17 3:41 AM 1.8H 10:14 AM 0.8L 5:42 PM 2.3H 11:33 PM 1.7LSep 18 3:38 AM 1.9H 10:55 AM 0.7L 7:01 PM 2.4HSep 19 12:44 AM 2.0L 3:23 AM 2.0H 11:42 AM 0.5L 8:29 PM 2.5HSep 20 12:37 PM 0.4L 10:05 PM 2.5HSep 21 1:38 PM 0.4L 11:36 PM 2.5HSep 22 2:47 PM 0.3LSep 23 12:44 AM 2.5H 4:00 PM 0.4LSep 24 1:30 AM 2.4H 5:13 PM 0.4LSep 25 2:02 AM 2.2H 6:21 PM 0.6LSep 26 2:24 AM 2.0H 7:53 AM 1.6L 11:56 AM 1.8H 7:24 PM 0.7LSep 27 2:40 AM 1.9H 8:06 AM 1.4L 1:33 PM 1.9H 8:23 PM 0.9LSep 28 2:51 AM 1.8H 8:29 AM 1.2L 2:50 PM 2.0H 9:18 PM 1.2L

San Antonio2012 A.M. P.M. SUN MOONSep-Oct Minor Major Minor Major Rises Sets Rises Sets14 Fri > 4:23 10:35 4:47 10:59 07:17 07:40 5:47a 6:35p 15 Sat N 5:09 11:21 5:33 11:46 07:17 07:39 6:48a 7:12p 16 Sun > 5:58 ----- 6:23 12:36 07:18 07:38 7:50a 7:51p 17 Mon > 6:52 12:38 7:18 1:05 07:18 07:36 8:55a 8:32p 18 Tue > 7:51 1:37 8:18 2:04 07:19 07:35 10:01a 9:18p 19 Wed 8:53 2:39 9:22 3:08 07:19 07:34 11:08a 10:08p 20 Thu 9:58 3:43 10:28 4:13 07:20 07:33 12:14p 11:02p 21 Fri 11:03 4:48 11:33 5:18 07:20 07:31 1:17p NoMoon 22 Sat ----- 5:50 12:05 6:20 07:21 07:30 2:15p NoMoon 23 Sun Q 12:34 6:48 1:03 7:17 07:21 07:29 3:08p 1:02a 24 Mon 1:28 7:41 1:55 8:08 07:22 07:28 3:55p 2:04a 25 Tue 2:17 8:29 2:42 8:55 07:22 07:26 4:36p 3:05a 26 Wed 3:01 9:13 3:25 9:37 07:23 07:25 5:14p 4:05a 27 Thu 3:43 9:55 4:06 10:18 07:23 07:24 5:49p 5:04a 28 Fri 4:25 10:36 4:47 10:58 07:24 07:23 6:23p 6:00a 29 Sat > 5:07 11:18 5:29 11:40 07:24 07:22 6:57p 6:56a 30 Sun > 5:51 ----- 6:13 12:02 07:25 07:20 7:32p 7:51a 01 Mon F 6:38 12:26 7:00 12:49 07:26 07:19 8:08p 8:46a 02 Tue > 7:27 1:15 7:50 1:39 07:26 07:18 8:47p 9:40a 03 Wed > 8:18 2:07 8:42 2:30 07:27 07:17 9:28p 10:34a

Amarillo2012 A.M. P.M. SUN MOONSep-Oct Minor Major Minor Major Rises Sets Rises Sets14 Fri > 4:36 10:48 5:01 11:13 07:28 07:55 5:57a 6:51p 15 Sat N 5:22 11:34 5:47 11:59 07:29 07:54 7:01a 7:25p 16 Sun > 6:11 ----- 6:37 12:50 07:30 07:52 8:07a 8:01p 17 Mon > 7:05 12:52 7:32 1:18 07:31 07:51 9:14a 8:40p 18 Tue > 8:04 1:50 8:32 2:18 07:31 07:49 10:23a 9:22p 19 Wed 9:07 2:52 9:36 3:21 07:32 07:48 11:33a 10:10p 20 Thu 10:12 3:57 10:42 4:27 07:33 07:47 12:41p 11:03p 21 Fri 11:17 5:02 11:47 5:32 07:33 07:45 1:45p NoMoon 22 Sat ----- 6:04 12:19 6:33 07:34 07:44 2:43p 12:01a 23 Sun Q 12:48 7:02 1:16 7:30 07:35 07:42 3:34p 1:03a 24 Mon 1:41 7:55 2:08 8:22 07:36 07:41 4:18p 2:07a 25 Tue 2:30 8:43 2:55 9:08 07:36 07:39 4:58p 3:11a 26 Wed 3:15 9:27 3:39 9:51 07:37 07:38 5:33p 4:13a 27 Thu 3:57 10:08 4:20 10:31 07:38 07:36 6:05p 5:14a 28 Fri 4:38 10:49 5:01 11:12 07:38 07:35 6:36p 6:13a 29 Sat > 5:20 11:31 5:43 11:54 07:39 07:34 7:07p 7:12a 30 Sun > 6:04 ----- 6:27 12:16 07:40 07:32 7:39p 8:09a 01 Mon F 6:51 12:40 7:14 1:02 07:41 07:31 8:13p 9:07a 02 Tue > 7:40 1:29 8:04 1:52 07:41 07:29 8:50p 10:04a 03 Wed > 8:32 2:20 8:55 2:44 07:42 07:28 9:30p 10:59a

Dallas2012 A.M. P.M. SUN MOONSep-Oct Minor Major Minor Major Rises Sets Rises Sets14 Fri > 4:16 10:28 4:40 10:52 07:09 07:34 5:37a 6:29p 15 Sat N 5:02 11:14 5:26 11:39 07:09 07:33 6:40a 7:05p16 Sun > 5:51 ----- 6:16 12:29 07:10 07:31 7:44a 7:42p 17 Mon > 6:45 12:31 7:11 12:58 07:11 07:30 8:51a 8:21p 18 Tue > 7:44 1:30 8:11 1:57 07:11 07:29 9:59a 9:05p 19 Wed 8:46 2:32 9:15 3:01 07:12 07:27 11:07a 9:54p 20 Thu 9:51 3:36 10:21 4:06 07:13 07:26 12:14p 10:47p 21 Fri 10:56 4:41 11:26 5:11 07:13 07:25 1:18p 11:45p 22 Sat 11:58 5:43 ----- 6:13 07:14 07:23 2:16p NoMoon 23 Sun Q 12:27 6:41 12:56 7:10 07:14 07:22 3:08p 12:47a 24 Mon 1:21 7:34 1:48 8:01 07:15 07:21 3:53p 1:50a 25 Tue 2:10 8:22 2:35 8:48 07:16 07:19 4:34p 2:53a 26 Wed 2:54 9:06 3:18 9:30 07:16 07:18 5:10p 3:55a 27 Thu 3:36 9:48 3:59 10:11 07:17 07:17 5:43p 4:54a 28 Fri 4:18 10:29 4:40 10:51 07:18 07:15 6:16p 5:53a 29 Sat > 5:00 11:11 5:22 11:33 07:18 07:14 6:48p 6:50a 30 Sun > 5:44 11:55 6:06 ----- 07:19 07:13 7:21p 7:46a 01 Mon F 6:31 12:19 6:53 12:42 07:20 07:11 7:56p 8:43a 02 Tue > 7:20 1:08 7:43 1:32 07:20 07:10 8:33p 9:38a 03 Wed > 8:11 2:00 8:35 2:23 07:21 07:09 9:14p 10:33a

Fried dove nuggets

*email LSON your favorite recipe to [email protected].

ACROSS1. Common name for the bowfi n

6. Action of a dry fl y on the water 8. A brand of camo 9. Formerly big game10. A wingshooter’s quarry11. Scent lure used by bear hunters15. A freshwater fi sh16. A type of arrow18. Favorite lure color to attract fi sh20. Electronic wear controls gundog21. A family of bottom fi sh24. Name for trout after hatching26. Shoulder hide on a deer27. A bear food source28. 17 down seeks this29. All outdoorsmen should carry one30. The varmint

DOWN1. A species of the bighorn

2. Act of forcing wildfowl to fl ight 3. Trout will run smaller in this 4. Newborn elk 5. A good trap bait 6. To place feathers on an arrow 7. State boasts second most elk12. A perch13. Female deer14. A young turkey15. The turkey’s feet17. Pursuer of otter, coon, weasel19. The pheasant

20. A game bird22. A wounded game or fowl

23. A northern saltwater fl atfi sh25. State most populated by elk


bows as they venture afield this season.

Legalized by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department in 2009, cross-bows have slowly been on the rise for hunting the past three years.

According to Rob Dykeman, director of sales and market-ing for Excalibur Crossbow in Ontario, Canada, the Texas market is growing at a slow and steady pace.

“A big part of the slow growth is because Texas has such a long gun season,” Dykeman said. “It’s not a huge advantage to pick up a crossbow like it is in much of the rest of the country where rifle season is two weeks and archery season is three months long. That said, every year we are seeing a steady increase.”

Dykeman said the sale of a crossbow often comes down to the man behind the counter.

“Some of our dealers sell 200 crossbows a year because they believe in it,” he said. “Unfortunately,

a lot depends on the atti-tude of the salesman. But in Texas, hog hunting with a crossbow is just so much fun, so we are seeing it pick up each season.”

TPWD doesn’t keep records on the number of crossbow hunters in the state, but dealers are taking notice of the upward trend.

“Oh yeah, I’ve seen a big uptick in the number of peo-ple shooting crossbows,” said Blake Kidder, archery manager for Wheeler’s Feed and Outfitters in Boerne. “I see a lot of people who want to be able to hunt longer and more throughout the year.

“It’s just so much easier — more like shooting a rifle.”

Many archery pros think crossbows are a good way to either venture into the archery market or prolong a hunting career.

“This time of year, I get about four or five calls a day asking about crossbows,” said Viking Archery man-ager Kevin Whiteford in Houston. “It’s a good car-

ryover from guys who nor-mally shoot rifles or guys with injuries.

“We’ve got guys that have been bowhunting for 40 or 50 years, and they just can’t pull a bow anymore. But they can prolong their hunt-ing with a crossbow.”

Whiteford said although crossbows are a great way to prolong a season, they do have some drawbacks.

“Crossbows are noisy,” he said. “When you are hunt-ing jumpy whitetails, it can be a real challenge. But for hog hunting, they are ideal.”

Kidder agreed.“There are a lot of rifle

hunters that don’t neces-sarily want to shoot a com-pound bow, but then they get a crossbow and move toward a compound bow,” he said. “We also see a lot of guys that have had inju-ries in the military that get back into bowhunting with a crossbow.

“A lot of dads also get their kids into hunting with a crossbow.”

CrossbowsContinued From Page 1

TPWD auction onlineBargain-savvy hunters now have a cost-effective opportunity to buy items for their deer lease.Through Sept. 21, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department is holding an online auction of

surplus property, with items located throughout the state. Items included in the auction are dozens of vehicles, a tractor, an ATV, a travel trailer, and

deer feeders. Those interested do not have to bid sight-unseen.On Sept. 18, from 8 a.m. to noon, and then 1 to 3 p.m., potential bidders can analyze the

items. TPWD employees and family members are not allowed to bid in the auction. To view the items on sale, visit lonestarauctioneers.com.

— Staff report



lease a lake, it’s yours and yours exclu-sively for a day,” he said. “It’s not so much what you see it’s what you don’t see: no Jet Skis, no crowds at the boat ramp, and no other boats on the water with you.”

Since the lakes are privately owned, strict management practices are implemented to help increase largemouth angler suc-cess. And it seems to be working.

“We’ve had 15 caught over 13 pounds,” Alexander said. “Our club has been around for 14 years, so we’ll have one or two fish that big caught every year.

“I have fished hundreds of times on

the lakes, and I have never been zeroed.”For members who want to target

something other than bass, there are some lakes that offer good numbers of different species.

“We are primarily a bass fishing club, but we do have guys that like to get out and crappie fish, or fish for bluegill or catfish,” he said.

Joe Ward, a landowner involved in the program, said his experience has been positive.

“I’ve been extremely pleased with Steve and the members of this club have

just been outstand-ing,” he said. “I had a pond that I knew had some fish but I didn’t manage, but now we’ve been man-aging the lake for two years and have already seen some significant growth in the size of the fish.”

Anglers who would like the benefits of fishing unpressured waters without pay-ing a membership fee can look into guide services that offer trips on private land.

Jace Outlaw, based in Fannin County, offers this kind of trip for $50.

“Our big deal is, we have so many places to fish, people will get to fish a minimum of four places,” he said. “If they aren’t biting one place, we’ll go to the next.”

Outlaw also touted the money that could

be saved for people who don’t fish very often.

“Most bass fishing trips on lakes are $250, just using a lot of fuel and having a boat to maintain,” he said. “But fishing private lakes on banks is cheaper, and I think you catch more fish on private lakes and ponds than on public lakes.

“You don’t have to beat people off your fishing spots; you know you’re going to get on some fish, and we’ve had a lot of people catch some really good bass,” Outlaw said.

PrivateContinued From Page 8

SECLUDED LUNKER: Joining a private water fishing club can grant anglers access to minimally-pressured ponds, where management practices grow big bass. Photo by Private Water Fishing.

advantage of an abundant food supply like sup-plemental feeders. Raccoons frequently gorge themselves on whatever food source is easily obtainable.”

The biology of raccoons is the reason behind their ferocious appetite.

“Mammalian predators have stomachs that stretch to many times their normal size, so rac-coons are biologically built to be able to take advantage of a food source when it’s available,” he said. “If you combine a raccoon’s biological ability to gorge themselves, with the fact that they probably are rarely persecuted at game feeders, spending a lot of time at a deer feeder is worth the trouble.”

Finding food to present to deer that doesn’t appeal to raccoons is difficult, but natural browse and food plots work because vegetation makes up only about 2 percent of a raccoon’s diet, according to Heilbrun. But almost any sup-plement that can be put in a feeder will probably be targeted by raccoons. And their numbers are likely continuing to grow.

“There are probably more raccoons in Texas now than ever before,” he said. “A lack of a fur trade, adaptability of raccoons to the urban environment, and the preponderance of sup-plemental game feeders have contributed to an extremely robust raccoon population in Texas.”

RaccoonsContinued From Page 24



NATIONALNative warm season grass forages could have lessened drought impacts

Landowners who planted warm sea-son grasses have weathered Arkansas’ drought better than those who haven’t.

Native warm season grasses can be the long-term solution to filling the summer forage gap that often hap-pens in Arkansas.

According to David Long, Arkansas Game and Fish Commission private lands supervisor, there are some options available to landowners.

“Under the Natural Resources Conservation Service cost-share programs like the Wildlife Habitat Incentive Program, Environmental Quality Incentive Program and AGFC private lands programs, there have been thousands of acres of natives planted over the past 10 years that are all alive and growing very well during one of the worst droughts in Arkansas history,” Long said.

While native forages require a little extra effort and cost to establish up front, these low-input perennial grasses provide a number of benefits including high yields (up to 4 tons per acre), high quality forage, low input cost and exceptional drought tolerance and are long-lasting — all qualities that ranchers are looking for, Long explained.

— Arkansas Game and Fish Commission

Expect roadblocks in New Mexico during hunting season

The New Mexico Department of Game and Fish will conduct roadblocks throughout the state during the upcom-ing hunting seasons to collect harvest data and apprehend wildlife law violators.

Conservation officers also will check for compliance with provisions of the Off Highway Motor Vehicle Act, the Aquatic Invasive Species Control Act, and drivers of vehicles hauling wood products will be asked to pro-duce documentation as required by the Forestry Conservation Act.

Department officers may be assisted by other law enforcement agencies such as the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, New Mexico State Police or county sheriff's departments. As a result, the public may encounter minor delays.

— New Mexico Dept. of Game and Fish

Louisiana closes some coastal areas

Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Secretary Robert Barham announced an emergency closure of a portion of coastal waters due to the emergence of a large tar mat and concentrations of tar balls on adjacent beaches, effective Sept. 4.

This action was taken in coordina-tion with the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality, which will assist with the investigation to deter-mine the extent, source, and impacts of the oil in the environment.

The area affected by this emer-gency closure includes the portion of state waters seaward a distance of one mile from the shoreline from the eastern shore of Belle Pass at 90 degrees 13 minutes 30 seconds west longitude eastward to the western shore of Caminada Pass at 90 degrees 02 minutes 46.6 seconds west longitude.

The only fishing activity allowed in the closed area is recreational, rod and reel (hook and line) fishing for finfish. The following activities are prohibited: all commercial fishing and recreational harvest of shrimp, crabs and oysters.

— Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries

Black bears on the move in Colorado

Cooler mornings and shorter days are reminders for people that fall will soon arrive. Colorado Parks and Wildlife advises everyone that black bears notice the subtle change in seasons too, and will soon begin their annual food binge as they pre-pare for hibernation.

No matter where you live or vaca-tion in the state, Colorado Parks and Wildlife encourages everyone to practice good habits that can help prevent serious interactions with hungry bears.

“Obey local ordinances, secure your trash, remove any accessible food source and never intention-ally feed a bear,” said Northwest Regional Manager Ron Velarde. “If more people follow just these few simple recommendations, it can reduce the possibility of conflicts.”

The biological drive to fatten up before winter is known as hyper-phagia — a period when a bear’s appetite increases dramatically. During this time, a bear's food intake increases from approxi-mately 8,000 to nearly 20,000 calories — approximately the equiv-alent of eating 70 cheeseburgers — every day. The urge to satisfy this enormous appetite can make these large animals more likely to venture into populated areas.

— Colorado Parks and Wildlife

Outdoor education on target with Oklahoma schools

Just eight years ago, the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation began the Oklahoma National Archery in Schools Program.

Today 350 Oklahoma schools and more than 40,000 students partici-

pate in the program annually, and it is leading the way for an entire suite of outdoor education programs offered to schools by the wildlife department.

Wildlife department officials say that schools across the state have been catching on to the program offerings and partnering with the department as the programs’ popu-larity among students, teachers and administrators has continued to mount. Officials say the programs work toward building interest in a lifetime of enjoying the outdoors.

In addition to OKNASP, the suite includes the wildlife depart-ment’s hunter education, Oklahoma Fishing in the Schools and Explore Bowhunting programs as well as a new scholastic shooting sports program. The wildlife department provides curriculum for all of the programs and even offers equipment grants for OKNASP Fishing in the Schools and Explore Bowhunting. While all grants are obligated for the coming year, schools can still apply and be placed on a waiting list.

— Oklahoma Dept. of Wildlife Conservation

Missouri collecting samples for CWD testing

The Missouri Department of Conservation is working with hunters, taxidermy shops and deer processors to collect tissue samples from adult deer harvested during the fall archery and firearms deer seasons.

The cooperative effort is part of MDC’s ongoing work to monitor the prevalence and distribution of chronic wasting disease in Missouri’s free-ranging deer. CWD has been found in free-ranging deer in Macon County. The sampling will take place from Sept. 15

to Jan. 15. It is limited to deer har-vested in MDC’s CWD Containment Zone of Adair, Chariton, Linn, Macon, Randolph and Sullivan counties.

Hunters are encouraged to take their harvested deer to one of numer-ous cooperating locations in the region. Removing a tissue sample is free, takes only a few minutes and will not reduce the food or mount value of harvested deer. Test results for participating hunt-ers will be posted on the MDC website beginning in December.

MDC will also collect additional samples from across north Missouri as part of its ongoing statewide CWD surveillance effort. With the help of hunters, MDC has tested more than 35,000 free-ranging deer for CWD from all parts of the state since 2002 and up to 2012.

—Missouri Dept. of Conservation

Louisiana assessing storm impact on wildlife

Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries biologists are assess-ing the impact of Hurricane Isaac on the deer populations in parishes flooded by the storm.

Flood conditions created by Isaac’s heavy rainfall moved deer out of normal habitat and in some instances resulted in deer mor-talities. Biologists are working to determine the overall effect on the deer herd within impacted areas of the state. Aerial, water-borne and ground surveys will continue throughout the month of September.

The data collected will be utilized by LDWF’s Deer Program manager to develop any recommendations for changes to the upcoming deer season.

— Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries


New lakeContinued From Page 11

staffer for Wilderness Kayaks and Kistler Rods. “But this is the largest bass I ever caught,”

he said. And the catch was caught on video, avail-

able at lsonews.com. Photos, though, didn’t work out so well.“After I measured the fish and we were

about to get photos, she flipped off right into the water,” he said.

The video shows the quick release.Clark and his friends will be back at the lit-

tle lake, only 692 acres and located about 12 miles northeast of Nacogdoches.

“It’s a great little lake,” he said. “We had a blast.”

The lake has an 18-inch minimum length limit on largemouths, with a daily bag limit of five bass.

Locals had a long wait for the lake, as ini-tial plans go back decades. But archeological finds delayed construction until initial con-struction permits were issued more than a decade ago.

“The dam was finished in 2009,” said Texas Parks and Wildlife Department biologist Todd Driscoll. “We started stocking in 2009 when the lake was 30 to 40 percent full.”

Bluegill were stocked first, and then Florida

largemouth bass, black and white crappie and channel catfish.

“The lake was des-ignated a priority lake for trophy bass, so it received a stocking of 100,000 Sharelunker fry, and adult brood bass up to 5 or 6 pounds have been stocked three times.”

Roger Bacon, a guide on Sam Rayburn Reservoir, fished Naconiche on Sept. 4.

“We fished from daylight until about 1 p.m.,” he said. “We caught about 35 fish, and the majority were 3 to 5 pounds. There’s

a lot of grass, and we fished the grass edges

in 12 to 18 feet of water. The bite turned off at 10:30 a.m. like you hit a switch.

“It really brought back memories of the good old grass days in Southeast Texas.”

Driscoll surveyed anglers the first few days after the lake opened.

“There have been numbers of 7- to 10-pound fish being caught,” he said, with four fish coming in topping 10 pounds. “We had high expectations and it is exceeding those. I predict a 13-plus fish will be landed in the next two or three years.”

Some anglers worry that heavy pressure on such a small lake will shut the fishing down.

“A 16- to 24-inch slot would help,” Bacon said. “It would still allow folks who want to keep a few for dinner the option without having to keep those over 18 inches.”

Driscoll said anglers will be surveyed next year to help determine the management strategy, but he had another suggestion.

“We’ll look at a 16-inch maximum regu-lation to manage the lake for trophy bass,” he said. “If the true goal is trophy bass, why not protect them all — the only exemption is a Sharelunker bass.”

TROPHY LAKE: Bobby Clark of Humble landed this 10-pound largemouth from his kayak on his first day of fishing Lake Naconiche. Photo by Bobby Clark.

See video at LSONews.com



B.A.S.S. to stop twice in Texas

Get ready, Texas.The B.A.S.S. Elite Series schedule has been

released and Texas will have two stops — one for the first time ever.

The coming year marks the eighth anniver-sary of the Elite Series and the 46th of the Bassmaster Tournament Trail.

It all begins with the 43rd Bassmaster Classic on Grand Lake O’ the Cherokees out of Tulsa, Okla.

The 2013 Classic will feature 36 Elite pros, including winners from each of the 2012 Elite tournaments. Other qualifiers include champions from the 2012 Bass Pro Shops Bassmaster Opens, six talented amateurs from the B.A.S.S. Federation Nation, the Weekend Series champion and the Carhartt College Series qualifier, Matt Lee of Auburn University.

After the Classic, the Elites head south to Orange and the Sabine River system for the Sabine River Challenge on March 14-17. It’ll be the first time B.A.S.S. has ever held a professional level event on the river, which flows out of the historic waters of Toledo Bend Reservoir. In early spring, bass on the river should be fat and plentiful.

From the Sabine River, the Elite anglers will drive southwest to Zapata for the Falcon Slam on March 21-24 and a much-antici-pated return to Falcon Lake. In 2008, Paul Elias won the tournament with a record catch weighing 132 pounds, 8 ounces. The event also produced the biggest bass in Elite history (13-2), the second heaviest five bass limit in B.A.S.S. history (44-4) and 12 catches weigh-ing better than 108 pounds.

— B.A.S.S.

New game wardens sworn in

Hunters and anglers may see some new faces patrolling the areas they frequent.

Forty new state game wardens soon will be taking to the field following their comple-tion of seven months of training at the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Game Warden

Training Center in Hamilton County.Members of the 57th Game Warden class

graduated in ceremonies recently in the House of Representatives chamber at the Capitol in Austin.

The new game wardens will be reporting for duty at stations spanning the state from East Texas to El Paso. While the primary duty of state game wardens is to enforce hunting and fishing laws and water safety regulations, they are fully commissioned peace officers who also respond to natural disasters, assist other local and state law enforcement agencies as well as conducting public outreach on a vari-ety of conservation-related topics.

The 40 new wardens will bring TPWD’s Law Enforcement Division to its authorized strength of 532 game wardens.

— TPWD

Guadalupe has more access

Anglers on the Guadalupe River will now have a few more places to access the fishery.

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department has signed temporary leased access agreements with three Guadalupe River property owners to expand public fishing access to the trout fish-ery downstream of Canyon Lake.

Access is now available through Mountain Breeze Campground, Rio Raft and Resort and Whitewater Sports.

The new leases will provide anglers with free access to the Guadalupe River at the three properties from 30 minutes before day-light until 30 minutes after dusk from now until the end of February 2013. Anglers will be able to use the properties for bank fishing and to launch nonmotorized watercraft such as rafts, kayaks and canoes for the purpose of fishing. The three leases were made pos-sible with grant funding provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Voluntary Public Access and Habitat Incentive Program.

For additional information or directions to the leased access areas call the numbers below:Mountain Breeze Campground, (830) 964-2484Rio Raft and Resort, (830) 964-3613Whitewater Sports, (830) 964-3800

— TPWD


LONE STAR MARKET

To advertise in this section, call Mike Hughs at (214) 361-2276 or e-mail him at [email protected].


LONE STAR MARKET

To advertise in this section, call Mike Hughs at (214) 361-2276 or e-mail him at [email protected].

Mount receives law enforcement awardGame Warden Michelle Mount has been named Officer of the Year by the Association of

Midwest Fish and Game Law Enforcement Officers.The award was presented to Mount by Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Executive

Director Carter Smith at the August meeting of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission at TPWD Headquarters.

Mount, a nine-year game warden stationed in Tarrant County, was recognized for her com-mitment and service to TPWD’s public outreach mission which includes presentations and events such as hunter education classes, school programs, inner city youth presentations and women in the outdoors events. She is also the regional point of contact for the public for questions regarding nongame and invasive species in the Fort Worth and Dallas areas.

— TPWD

Bluegill tournament set for Sept. 29Grab the little ones and head to a fishing tournament where anyone has a shot at winning.The Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center’s annual Bluegill Family Fishing Tournament will take

place this year on Saturday, Sept. 29.The tournament awards prizes for the heaviest stringers of sunfish, but the event is really

about adults and children having fun fishing together.Teams must consist of one adult 18 years of age or older and one child under 18 years of

age. Each team can weigh in a maximum of four fish. Multiple teams can fish from the same boat, making it possible for both parents to partner with different children and still fish as a family. Team members do not have to be related.

Teams may choose to fish either on Lake Athens, which is adjacent to TFFC, or in TFFC’s ponds and streams, some of which have been stocked with bluegills.

All species of sunfish or bream (except largemouth bass) are allowed.Pre-registration is required. Mail registration must be received by Wednesday, Sept. 26.For more information or to request an entry form, contact Craig Brooks at (903) 670-2222.

— TPWD

Lake Palestine receives vegetationTexas Parks and Wildlife Department Inland Fisheries crews recently completed the first

phase of a project to establish native aquatic vegetation in Lake Palestine.Using $10,000 in funding from the Reservoir Fisheries Habitat Project, TPWD planted five

species of native vegetation inside 30 protective enclosures along more than a mile of shoreline.The plants were produced at a plant nursery at the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center in

Athens that was funded by the East Texas Woods and Waters Foundation.“In Lake Palestine, most submersed aquatic vegetation is limited to a small area of shallow

water separated from the rest of the reservoir by a causeway and bridge,” said Richard Ott, the TPWD biologist who manages the lake’s fishery. “The founder colonies of plants will allow the prevailing southerly wind during the growing season to distribute seed and plant fragments north toward other areas of the reservoir. The locations for the colonies were selected due to the lack of waterfront homes to reduce conflict with property owners. The species we selected were those that work best in most Texas reservoirs but that haven’t shown to be problematic.”

The vegetation is expected to spread outside the enclosures, which protect the young plants from being eaten by turtles, fish and beavers.

— TPWD


September 14-15TexasWildlifeAssociation3rd Annual Barbecue Cook-offFreeman Exposition Hall, San Antonio(800) 839-9453, ext. 114texas-wildlife.org

September 15BargainHuntersOutdoorsAnnual Open Season EventWeatherford(817) 598-0026bargainhunteroutdoors.com

September 15-16BassChampsTournamentNorth Region ChampionshipLake Lewisville(817) 439-3274basschamps.com

September 20DallasSafariClubMonthly MeetingGlen Eagles Country Club, Plano(972) 980-9800biggame.org

DucksUnlimitedHeart of Texas BanquetPfl uger Hall, Pfl ugerville(512) 461-3568ducks.org/Texas

September 21-222012CentralTexasHuntingandOutdoorExpoRockdale(512) 446-2030tx-rockdalechamber.civicplus.com

September 22DallasSafariClubFall Youth S.A.F.E.T.Y. EventGreystone Castle(972) 980-9800biggame.org

September 25DucksUnlimitedWharton BanquetHungerford Hall(979) 532-3175ducks.org/Texas

September 27DucksUnlimitedSan Antonio BanquetAlzafar Shrine Temple(210) 381-8299ducks.org/Texas

DucksUnlimitedMid-South Texas BanquetPort Arthur Civic Center(409) 454-4884ducks.org/Texas

September 28-30ToyotaTexasBassClassicLone Star Convention and Expo Center, Conroe(512) 389-4855toyotatexasbassclassic.com

September 29CaesarGueriniEleventh Hour Sporting Clays Warm UpDallas Gun Club(972) 462-0043dallasgunclub.com

September 29-30BassChampsTournamentCentral Region ChampionshipLake LBJ(817) 439-3274basschamps.com

October 3Ducks UnlimitedLone Star Chapter BanquetAmerican Legion Hall, Llano(512) 755-9770ducks.org/Texas

October 4Ducks UnlimitedMatagorda County DinnerBay City Civic Center, Bay City(979) 429-0050ducks.org/Texas

October 9Ducks UnlimitedColorado County BanquetColumbus Veterans Community Center,Columbus(979) 732-0428ducks.org/Texas

October 11Lone Star Outdoor News FoundationWild Game SupperBeretta Gallery,Dallas(214) 559-9800lsonews.com

Delta WatefowlSan Antonio Chapter DinnerAnne Marie’s (210) 305-1293deltawaterfowl.org

October 12Operation Game ThiefAlamo Area Sporting Clays FundraiserNational Shooting Complex, San Antonioogttx.com

October 13-14Galveston Bay FoundationBike Around the Baybikearoundthebay.org

October 16Delta WaterfowlNacogdoches DinnerPiney Woods Country Club(936) 553-8388deltawaterfowl.org

October 18Ducks UnlimitedArlington Dinner and BanquetCollins Entertainment Center,Arlington(469) 446-4176ducks.org/texas

October 19Delta WaterfowlCleburne DinnerJohnson County Sheriff’s Posse Grounds(817) 307-4468deltawaterfowl.org

October 19-20Taxidermy KingBig Game and Trophy Mount AuctionWill Rogers Memorial Center, Fort Worth(512) 451-7633taxidermyking.com

October 20-21BassChampsTournament7th Annual Big Bass TournamentLake Fork(817) 439-3274basschamps.com

DATEBOOKSeptember 22DallasSafariClubFall Youth S.A.F.E.T.Y. EventGreystone Castle(972) 980-9800biggame.org

1, 2, 3 PERSONFAMILY PACKAGE HUNT

1-Whitetail Buck: up to 140 B&C gross score. 1-Blackbuck: up to 18”. 1-Mature Fallow Buck. Includes: 2 nights Lodging$5,500 + $150 per day guide fee. www.VictoriaOaksRanch.com.Call for Details:

(830) 931-9376

BLASER F3 12 GA.OVER/UNDER

Factory case, acces-sories, warranty and 6 chokes. Great condi-tion. $5,500 obo. Evan.

(214) 232-8508

TROPHY WHITETAILDEER HUNTS

And/or cull hunts on high fenced ranch west of Fort Worth. Day hunts or lodg-ing available. Contact David (817) 734-9229 or email [email protected]

SOUTH PADRE FISHING

Reds, Trout, Flounder, Snook. Everything sup-plied but food and licenses. Multiple trip discounts. Call Capt. Thomas for details or [email protected].

(956) 551-1965

DEER LEASE WANTEDLone Star Outdoor News is looking for a hunt-ing and fi shing lease with all hunt and fi sh rights. Central or Northwest Texas. Camphouse is needed.

(214) 361-2276

TROPHY ELK &WHITETAIL HUNTS

Near Brownwood Texas. Not hunted in 2 years. Call Bob and book your hunt any way you want.

(325) 200-8116

WANTEDDeer hunting lease. Call

(281) 442-5330

FLOATING CABINFOR SALE IN THE FAMOUS LANDCUT

Corpus Christi, Texas.Can be rented out with our base of repeat customers. Priced at $125,000 or willsell shares. For example: 5 people at $25,000 eachor 10 people at $12,500. Get your buddies togetherand have a fl oating cabin to share or purchase anduse as a business. Also, I have one in Baffi n Baywith the same terms. Call

(361) 215-3515

TEXAS DUCKSTAMP/PRINT COLLECTION

FOR SALE 1981 thru 2011. Call Steve Barber at

(817) 832-8078

SWAP MEETBUY, SELL OR TRADE

At Hills of Texas Taxidermy in Llano, Texas. Anything outdoor sports related. September 29, 2012. For booth information call

(325) 247-4963

CLASSIFIEDSDEER HUNITNG INCALDWELL COUNTY, TX

$600 covers Friday eve-ning through Sunday evening. Up to a 130 Boone and Crockett buck included. Primative camp-ing and fi shing avilable. Call

(512) 689-5297

2-3 DAY PACKAGE HUNTS

Elk and whitetail; high fence. Reata Ranch, Glen Rose, TX. Bow or rifl e; 140 to 160 pt. whitetail and 4x4 to 9x9 on elk; Does & cows optional; bass fi sh-ing; nice 4 bedroom house.

(214) 522-3154

TEXASARCHERY.INFO

2000 FLEETWOOD WILDERNESS TRAVEL

TRAILEROversized propane tanks. Central A/C and heating. 1/2 Ton towable. Queen bed.$5,600 OBO.

(713) 454-9049

STATE WATERFOWLSTAMP/PRINT COLLECTION

FOR SALE 32 total signed and num-bered state prints and stamps from around the country12 state fi rst; Louisiana, Vermont, Arizona,Kansas, Rhode Island, Kentucky, Connecticut, Idaho, Virginia, Nebraska, Canada, Australia. 10 from South Carolina. All unframed.Great art work for any water fowlers offi ce wall or hunting camp. Call and ask for David.

(214) 361-2276

2 issues minimum

Mail in,Email us,or Call

(214) 361-2276

PER WORD$1


OUTDOOR BUSINESS

Lone Star Outdoor News, ISSN 2162-8300, a publication of Lone Star Outdoor News, LLC, publishes twice a month. A mailed subscription is $30 for 24 issues. Newsstand copies are $2, in certain mar-kets copies are free, one per person. Copy-right 2012 with all rights reserved. Repro-duction and/or use of any photographic or written material without written permission by the publisher is prohibited. Subscribers may send address changes to: Lone Star Outdoor News, P.O. Box 551695, Dallas, TX 75355 or e-mail them to [email protected].

Advertising Call (214) 361-2276 or email editor@lone staroutdoornews.com to request a media kit.

For home delivery subscriptions www.LSONews.com(214) 361-2276

Executive Editor

Managing Editor

Associate Editor

Graphics Editor

Business/Products Editor

Intern

Operations Manager

Accounting

Web site

Founder & CEO

Craig Nyhus

Conor Harrison

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John Keith

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Ginger Hoolan

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David J. Sams

National Advertising Accounts Manager

Contributors Kyle CarterDavid DraperShannon DraweWilbur LundeenJohn MeyerErich SchlegelDavid SikesScott SommerlatteChuck UzzleRalph Winingham

Battling wind, fi eld leads team to Bass Champs title

Adapting to a strong cold front led Shonn Blassingame of Sunset and Cody Burdine of Bridgeport to the title at the Bass Champs Toledo Bend Championship. The front blew in on Sat., Sept. 8 during the fi rst morning of the two-day event.

“Saturday, we had a 15-pound limit within the fi rst hour,” Blassingame said. “After the front hit, the bite slowed way down.”

The pair fi shed crankbaits on windy points, catching 4- to 5-foot swells coming into the boat. It paid off with a 10.52-pound bass, the largest of the tournament. Heading into the second day in second place, their success continued for a fi nal total of 42.37 pounds and the win.

The team won a Skeeter boat with a Yamaha 225SHO motor.

Tim and Judy Reneau of Del Rio fi nished sec-ond with 40.35 pounds, followed by Louisianans Glen Freeman and Jeff Rice with 39.60 pounds.

East Texas Region Anglers of the Year Rusty Clark and Cory Rambo brought in a light limit at 12.07 pounds on Day One, but had quite an experience on the water.

“We were fi shing a somewhat protected shore-line on the south end, and saw a small 12-foot boat out by the island with four people in it, including a 6-year-old,” Clark said. ”The front came through, bringing with it high winds caus-ing big waves on the lake. We kept a pretty close eye on them. There was more people than boat. We knew something bad was about to happen.”

When the small boat tried to cross a cut and was exposed to the wind, it took a wave over the side and capsized. Two teams, including Clark’s, went to assist.

“We each put two passengers in our boats and took them to the shore,” Clark said. “That took about 45 minutes out of our day. No one had life jackets, not even the kid.”

—Bass Champs

Bowden wins LBAAFt. Worth pro Cheryl Bowden adapted to the

changing conditions on Alabama’s Lake Neely Henry to capture her fi rst Lady Bass Anglers Association tour victory as she brought 21.90 pounds to the scales in the two-day LBAA event.

Bowden’s fi rst LBAA tour victory was by the slimmest of margins over Bainbridge, Georgia pro Pam Martin-Wells, who caught 20.88-pounds.

“The water muddied up,” Bowden exclaimed at the event’s conclusion. “We also had no cur-rent and we had cloudy, but we had no rain. In practice I needed the rain and clouds. I didn’t have that so I had to make adjustments, so I went from buzzbait to crank bait. It was a really

slow bite, too; however, my Texas rig was the same the entire tournament, with the difference being that I had to move it really, really slow.”

At around 10:30 a.m., Bowden moved to an area she fi shed for the fi rst time on day one. When she arrived there, she had four average fi sh in the boat.

“There is a stump there and on my fi rst cast, as soon as it hit the water, I had a bite and hooked the fi sh,” she said. “Next cast, another fi sh, and I got that one in the livewell and got things set again. I reapplied my Kick `n Bass and cast again — another one. Then another one and I culled three times off of that one stump.”

— LBAA

Texas Bass Classic fi eld shaping up

Big bass in Lake Conroe better head for cover.With the Toyota Texas Bass Classic less than a

month away, tournament offi cials are pleased to announce more qualifi ers to the 2012 fi eld list. The top 15 from the Bassmaster Toyota Tundra Angler of the Year standings have qualifi ed, join-ing the top 15 from the Walmart FLW Outdoors Angler of the Year list.

Highlights from the fi eld include defending Bassmaster Classic champion Chris Lane and Toyota angler Terry Scroggins.

The Toyota Texas Bass Classic will take place Sept. 28-30 at Lake Conroe, with weigh-in and concerts being held at the Lone Star Convention & Expo Center in Conroe.

From the FLW Tour, David Dudley, David Lefebre, Luke Clausen and Bryan Thrift are among the quali-

fying anglers.Other qualifi ed anglers include Ott Defoe,

Todd Faircloth, Randy Howell, Matthew Herren, Edwin Evers, Bill Lowen, Aaron Martens, Bobby Lane, Greg Hackney, David Walker, Dean Rojas, Cliff Pace and John Crews.

The fi nal 20 anglers will be fi lled with the 2011 champion, Keith Combs; four sponsor exemptions and the top 15 from the 2012 Bass Pro Shops PAA Tournament Series Angler of the Year.

— TPWD

Angler’s body located in Texas City

A wade fi sherman's body was located by Coast Guard crews about 100 feet off the Texas City Dike on Sept. 1.

A Coast Guard Air Station Houston MH-65 Dolphin helicopter crew located 41-year-old High Island angler Michael Wade Christian at 10:31 p.m.

The helicopter crew vectored in a Texas City Fire Department boat crew to recover the body.

The Coast Guard helicopter had been launched after a Texas City Police Department dispatcher contacted Coast Guard Sector Houston-Galveston watchstanders at 9:06 p.m. and requested help fi nding the missing man.

“I feel for the family,” said Zach Edwards, a search and rescue coordinator at Sector Houston-Galveston. “This guy has obviously been doing this for a while and we launched as soon as we got notifi ed. Unfortunately, he was deceased when we found him.”

— USCGS

Puzzle solution from Page 25


2013 TPWD Operating and Capital Budget by Division/Object of Expense (in dollars)

DIVISION SALARIES & OTHER OPERATING GRANTS DEBT SERVICE BENEFITS CAPITAL BUDGET TOTAL FTEAdministrative Resources 117.00Coastal Fisheries 195.00Communications 72.00Department-wide -Executive Administration 30.00Human Resources 25.00Information Technology 83.50Infrastructure 118.00Inland Fisheries 210.00Law Enforcement 657.50Legal 10.00Local Parks 11.00State Parks 1,281.30Wildlife 280.00Capital Construction -Capital Information Technology -Capital Land Acquisition -GLO Transfer -TOTAL 3,090.30

2013 TPWD Budget by Strategy

STRATEGY FY2013A.1.1. Wildlife Conservation 19,004,336A.1.2. Technical Guidance 2,161,091A.1.3. Hunting and Wildlife Recreation 2,749,284A.2.1. Inland Fisheries Management 13,029,396A.2.2. Inland Hatcheries Operations 4,550,221A.2.3. Coastal Fisheries Management 11,261,424A.2.4. Coastal Hatcheries Operations 3,253,513B.1.1. State Park Operations 63,688,744B.1.2. Parks Minor Repair Program 3,899,383B.1.3. Parks Support 3,820,680B.2.1. Local Park Grants 446,980B.2.2. Boating Access and Other Grants 5,753,264C.1.1. Enforcement Programs 43,350,918C.1.2. Warden Training Academy 1,660,524C.1.3. Law Enforcement Support 2,261,648

STRATEGY FY2013C.2.1. Hunter and Boater Education 1,779,933C.2.2. TP&W Magazine 2,072,631C.2.3. Communication Products & Services 3,082,468C.2.4. Outreach and Education 803,377C.3.1. License Issuance 7,262,109C.3.2. Boat Registration and Titling 1,346,474D.1.1. Improvements and Major Repairs 85,049,865D.1.2. Land Acquisition 373,098D.1.3. Infrastructure Administration 4,454,180D.1.4. Debt Service 7,208,829E.1.1. Central Administration 9,447,328E.1.2. Information Resources 11,439,740E.1.3. Other Support Services 2,904,292Other Activity Payroll Related 39,417,737TOTAL 357,533,467

METHODOFFINANCE FY2013General Revenue 83,014,267GR Ded-Game, Fish, and Water Safety 108,215,644GR Ded-State Parks 40,263,489GR Ded-Other 2,313,762Federal Funds 45,977,339Other Funds 8,914,276GO Bonds 68,834,689TOTAL 357,533,467

TPWD FY 2013 BudgetThe Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Commissioners met Aug. 29 to adopt the Fiscal Year 2013 budget.Below is the Operating and Capital budget by division and strategy.Revenue from license sales and outdoor equipment purchases fund a large part of the TPWD budget.

3,146,366

20,428

73,248,371196,742

76,611,907

5,642,3919,389,7893,893,042

2,156,3141,313,3735,298,3564,102,509

10,769,09637,025,289

799,325668,717

43,273,60314,835,638

139,167,442

1,022,1733,692,7683,196,029

18,924,734378,964236,981585,719

1,044,7205,042,7729,128,410

61,168311,605

23,835,7397,213,017

4,465,596

79,140,395

607,587150,000

631,890

2,922,308

441,412

11,233,96015,987,157

7,208,829

7,208,829

1,469,7532,576,971

970,850

503,761328,923

1,268,7601,062,9122,737,476

10,125,566170,496204,105

13,949,9284,048,236

39,417,737

8,134,31716,267,115

8,209,92129,279,929

3,039,0391,879,2777,152,8356,210,141

19,181,23456,279,265

1,030,9894,106,735

81,079,69826,538,30373,248,371

4,662,3380

11,233,960357,533,467



Documents

September 13, 2012 - Lone Star Outdoor News - Fishing & Hunting